Dear Friend,

Welcome to the September 2023 newsletter.

Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) is a time for reflection, repentance and renewal. It is a time for family, sweetness and joy. It is a time to take account of the past year and look forward to the future. It is a time for introspection and retrospection. Barack Obama once said:" Jewish tradition teaches us that for the next ten days (between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) the Book of Life is open. As millions of Jews ask God to inscribe their names in that book, we recognize how much lies beyond our control, yet during these days of awe we recognize our tremendous power to make a difference in our lives and in our world."

Wishing those celebrating the New Year a Shana Tova, and Gmar Chatima Tova. A meaningful and happy festive season with your family and friends.

In this edition (if viewing this on a desktop, click on each heading to skip to that section):

This reflection was written by Rabbi Yoseph Nerenberg, participant on MOTL 2023 and in-house Rabbi at Jewish Care Victoria:

Being a seventh generation American on both of my parents' sides, my only real exposure to the traumas of the Holocaust was through film and stories and through meeting Survivors. Even after being employed as a rabbi at Jewish Care more than 15 years ago, and spending countless of hours with Holocaust Survivors and seeing first-hand the effects of their wartime experiences, I was still only able to empathise with them superficially. Therefore, when an opportunity arose to attend the March of the Living on a scholarship funded by Jewish Care, I willingly applied.

After three years' worth of cancelled trips due to Covid, I finally attended the 2023 International March of the Living as part of the Australian delegation along with 47 others from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, and thousands of others from all around the world. To sum up our two weeks together in a couple of sentences is virtually impossible. I can think of a word beginning with nearly every letter of the alphabet to describe our trip. It was emotional, amazing, depressing, inspiring, confronting, overwhelming and memorable. We cried together, laughed together, mourned together and sang and danced together. When we said our goodbyes at the end, we felt like we were parting from our own family. We promised to remain in touch and began to plan for future reunions. One idea which was floated was to hold a special Shabbat Shul Service and Kiddush at Gary Smorgon House, one of Jewish Care's aged care homes, where I am the rabbi. The 2023 March of the Living participants would be invited to attend, share their experiences with the residents and their family members, and hear firsthand accounts from some of the Survivors currently living at the home. We found a Shabbat that was convenient for most, and after weeks of planning, it finally arrived.

On Saturday the 12th of August, close to 20 participants from the MOTL 2023 trip joined more than 100 people at the Shul Service and more than 140 at the Gala Kiddush which followed. Participants were called up to the Torah for Aliyot, I delivered a Holocaust related sermon, and a guest Chazan led the Mussaf Davening. The highlights of the day were the speeches which were delivered during the Kiddush: Rabbi Ralph Genende OAM, Director of Jewish Life Services for Jewish Care Victoria and himself a MOTL alumnus as a religious leader of two past trips, passionately spoke on behalf of MOTL and Jewish Care. MOTL 2023 participants Hannah Wollan and Mai Gutman reflected on their MOTL experiences and their personal connections to Holocaust Survivors within their families. And lastly, Abram Goldberg OAM – husband of Gary Smorgon House Elder Cesia Goldberg – and GSH Elder Ester Braitberg both related their stories of survival, while being surrounded by three generations of their descendants. The mood in the room was both serious and jovial, and attendees were inspired by the ability of the Survivors to rebuild.

Following the Kiddush, a Survivor approached me in tears, and what she said to me absolutely captured the purpose of the event and the essence of what March of the Living is all about. "Thank you so much rabbi for arranging this event and for visiting the Camps in Poland. Seeing the young people here today and hearing them speak assures me that my story will not die with me and will definitely live on and be told over again by the next generation."

This, my friends, is what MOTL is all about!

 Click here  to read Rabbi Genende's piece entitled "From Auschwitz to Sinai" and to see a photo collage from this year's trip. 

Succession and Capacity Building. For 22 years, March of the Living Australia has been successfully and passionately led by dedicated volunteers and a part-time administrator. However, the potential for growth in both scale and impact now exceed the capacity of the volunteers, and the time has come to employ a full-time paid chief executive. As the outgoing de-facto voluntary chief executive for the past 12 years, I am pleased to advise that we have found the private and corporate financial and advisory backing to enable this transition and began a search for the inaugural CEO of March of the Living Australia Ltd.

I am absolutely thrilled to advise that our search and extensive interviewing process is now over and as of the 23rd of October March of the Living Australia Ltd will be led by an extremely capable, passionate and committed individual who will take this extraordinary enterprise into the future. We will reveal and introduce the newly appointed CEO to you in our next newsletter, prior to our BIG Events scheduled for 15th October and 21st October in Melbourne and Sydney respectively.

If you are interested in joining the program in 2024 - we are still accepting Expressions of Interest for our 2024 programs, so click on the button below if you would like to be added to our mailing list and to receive details about our 2024 programs.

We are currently experiencing an upsurge in bigotry, discrimination, race-hate and antisemitism. Globally and domestically. In the media, in the workplace, on campus, at schools. There is an urgent need for people of goodwill to stand up and speak out. Olympic champion Ian Thorpe AM, investigative journalist Nick McKenzie and eminent school principal Dr Kate Hadwen recently participated in the March of The Living program which took them to Poland and to Israel, on a journey described as "going where history books can't".

Please join us at this unique event to hear firsthand of their experiences, their emotions, their thoughts and the lessons they have learned and carry with them from this highly impactful journey.

Ian Thorpe's achievements in the pool guaranteed him a place among Australia's sporting greats. He was inducted into the Australian Hall of Fame in 2008 and elevated to Legend of Australian Sport in 2021. In 2021 Ian was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia (AM), for significant service to youth and Indigenous education through charitable initiatives and to swimming. Known as the Thorpedo, Ian's work outside of the pool saw him give voice to many social issues. He has used his profile to raise awareness on numerous issues including depression and equality. His philanthropic focus saw him work to raise funds for multiple causes, including children, cancer and indigenous education.

Dr Kate Hadwen is an experienced educational leader, having worked across the breadth of schooling from Kindergarten to Year 12 and at tertiary level. Kate is currently the Principal of Pymble Ladies' College, the largest single sex girls' school in the Southern Hemisphere. Kate worked for five years as a Senior Research Fellow at The Child Health Promotion Research Centre and was awarded the Vice Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Research. She is a Non-Executive Director with the Australian Youth Orchestra, an Honorary Fellow of the Telethon Kids' Institute and the Child Health Promotion Research Centre, a member of the Advisory Council for AISNSW and is on the IGSA Standing Committee. Kate has recently been appointed Director of the International Coalition of Girls' Schools representing over 550 girls' schools globally. Kate has always championed student voice and has worked hard to ensure young people are empowered as co-contributors in all major decisions in the organisations she has led.

Nick McKenzie is an Australian investigative journalist. He has won 14 Walkley Awards, been twice named the Graham Perkin Australian Journalist of the Year and also received the Kennedy Award for Journalist of the Year in 2020 and 2022. He is the president of the Melbourne Press Club. McKenzie is known for his work exposing corruption in politics, business, foreign affairs/defence, human rights issues, policing, and criminal justice. He works for Melbourne's The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian Financial Review and has reported for Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Four Corners and Nine's 60 Minutes. In June 2023 McKenzie won what some dubbed the Trial of the Century when sued by decorated soldier Ben Roberts-Smith. A judge said four of the six murder allegations—all denied by the soldier in question—were substantially true.

We look forward to your participation in this thought provoking and impactful evening of discovery, discussion and call to action in the quest to create a more tolerant, respectful and inclusive society for us all.

Spread the news about this event far and wide to your family, friends and colleagues. We are looking forward to welcoming a diverse audience from all sectors and age groups to listen to the compelling feedback from these incredible communal leaders and opinion influencers. .

Price includes complimentary drinks at end of the event.

Please note that the venue of the event will be advised to all registrants via email 72 hours prior to the event.

We are currently experiencing an upsurge in bigotry, discrimination, race-hate and antisemitism. Globally and domestically. In the media, in the workplace, on campus, at schools. There is an urgent need for people of goodwill to stand up and speak out. Olympic champion Ian Thorpe AM  and eminent school principal Dr Kate Hadwen recently participated in the March of The Living program which took them to Poland and to Israel, on a journey described as "going where history books can't".

Please join us at this unique event to hear firsthand of their experiences, their emotions, their thoughts and the lessons they have learned and carry with them from this highly impactful journey.

Ian Thorpe's achievements in the pool guaranteed him a place among Australia's sporting greats. He was inducted into the Australian Hall of Fame in 2008 and elevated to Legend of Australian Sport in 2021. In 2021 Ian was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia (AM), for significant service to youth and Indigenous education through charitable initiatives and to swimming. Known as the Thorpedo, Ian's work outside of the pool saw him give voice to many social issues. He has used his profile to raise awareness on numerous issues including depression and equality. His philanthropic focus saw him work to raise funds for multiple causes, including children, cancer and indigenous education.

Dr Kate Hadwen is an experienced educational leader, having worked across the breadth of schooling from Kindergarten to Year 12 and at tertiary level. Kate is currently the Principal of Pymble Ladies' College, the largest single sex girls' school in the Southern Hemisphere. Kate worked for five years as a Senior Research Fellow at The Child Health Promotion Research Centre and was awarded the Vice Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Research. She is a Non-Executive Director with the Australian Youth Orchestra, an Honorary Fellow of the Telethon Kids' Institute and the Child Health Promotion Research Centre, a member of the Advisory Council for AISNSW and is on the IGSA Standing Committee. Kate has recently been appointed Director of the International Coalition of Girls' Schools representing over 550 girls' schools globally. Kate has always championed student voice and has worked hard to ensure young people are empowered as co-contributors in all major decisions in the organisations she has led.

We look forward to your participation in this thought provoking and impactful evening of discovery, discussion and call to action in the quest to create a more tolerant, respectful and inclusive society for us all.

Spread the news about this event far and wide to your family, friends and colleagues. We are looking forward to welcoming a diverse audience from all sectors and age groups to listen to the compelling feedback from these incredible communal leaders and opinion influencers. .

Price includes complimentary drinks at end of the event.

Please note that the venue of the event will be advised to all registrants via email 72 hours prior to the event.

MOTL in conjunction with ACCJ (Australian Council of Christians and Jews) and CCJ Vic held an online event titled: A fraction too much Holocaust fiction?

How can writers and creators ethically tell stories that enlighten younger generations about the Holocaust in the hope that it will never happen again? Is the Holocaust becoming just another exotic location for a romantic love story? Are Jews and the culture of Judaism being edited out of Holocaust fiction? Does that open Australian readers to a kind of antisemitism? That's what romantic fiction writer and researcher Kim Kelly has argued.

Join Kim Kelly and New Zealand Holocaust "faction" author Navina Clemerson in a conversation with actor/writer and ACCJ chair Ron Hoenig.

Ever since Anat Harrel remembers, she has loved history.  This fascination with the lessons of the past shaped her career choices as she spent many years teaching history, language arts, ancient civilizations, geography and humanities in public schools, Jewish day schools and synagogue religious schools in Northern California. Although born in Israel, Anat spent most of her childhood abroad. Then after serving in the IDF, she ended up in the San Francisco Bay Area where she raised a family. She returned to Israel in 2011 and became a licensed Israel tour guide, taking her passions to a new level. Anat now lives in the beautiful Galilee, on Kibbutz Hannaton, a small, religious, egalitarian, multi denominational, intentional community kibbutz.

The Trachtenbergs and Kelners are Anat's family. They were Lubliners. They lived, worked and loved in Lublin as part of large families, surrounded by friends and community. Most of the Trachtenbergs and Kelners were murdered in the Shoah, but some survived the war by immigrating to Canada, Israel, and Australia, or escaping eastward towards the Soviets. This is the story of Anat's father, his journey around the world, and his eventual return to his Polish roots.

Here is a selection of recent articles and videos from around the world, many of which we have shared across our social media over the past few weeks:

• As the school year starts, we must still teach the Holocaust
• Liel and Dora
• Back to school: Exhibits custom-tailored for US pupils make Holocaust a local issue
• Caught between Hitler and Stalin, one family's miraculous tale of survival
• When the Jewish Boy Jumped onto the Carriage of King George 
• The Nazi Officer Who Saved 100 Jewish Families
• Never before seen footage of US soldiers rescuing Jews from Nazi death train 

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