A group of 10th grade students from Ms. Shoemaker's World Literature class took a trip to the Miami Holocaust Memorial on Tuesday. The Memorial was so impressed with them that they are paying for the buses they traveled in to get there.
Students heard from Laszlo Selly, a Holocaust survivor from Budapest, Hungary. He was 7 years old, living in a Jewish ghetto in Budapest, and he and his twin brother were sent to be hidden with a friend of their family. They were found out and were returned to their parents. Eventually he and his family were set to be shot and thrown in the Danube River. The morning that was to happen, the Soviet Army liberated his street in Budapest, saving them from their death. Mr. Selly did not begin telling his story until about 7 years ago, even to his own wife!
Students then were taken on a private tour of the Memorial by Mr. Selly and Jen, a woman who is 3rd generation of survivors
Students were assigned to take pictures on the trip and then pick one picture to write about. They are also writing a reflection on what the Holocaust unit has taught them and how it has impacted them/their lives. At the beginning of the unit, students read and analyzed a speech given by Elie Wiesel at the dedication of the Miami Holocaust Memorial. The group picture taken was in the exact location that Elie Wiesel gave that speech.
Thanks go out to the chaperones who accompanied students on the trip: Mrs. Daniela Barton (Meredith Barton’s mom), Mrs. Penny Maun (Take Stock mentor), Mrs. Lisa Testa (MCSD employee), Mr. Andy Strunk, Mrs. Michele Rodriguez (Take Stock mentor), and the 10th grade school counselor, Lindsay Moore.