Dear Friend, March of the Living Australia would like to wish you, your family and loved ones a
Chag Same'ach / חג שמח
and a Shana Tova U'Metuka / שנה טובה ומתוקה May you have a safe, joyful, happy and prosperous new year ahead, and may we all be inscribed in the book of life for another year and have the opportunity to express and exemplify kindness, compassion, peace and light in our households and communities.
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We have a jam-packed newsletter this month, which we are excited to share with you below! | In this edition (if viewing this on a desktop, click on each heading to skip to that section): |
MOTL Australia's 2022 Matched Giving Day:
"SEE FOR THEMSELVES"
- A Huge Success!
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On Wednesday 31 August we held our 2022 Matched Giving Day Fundraising Campaign - See For Themselves - with the all-important aim of raising funds to enable the future leaders of our communities, the Gen Y and Gen Z cohorts, to experience the unique and life-changing March of the Living Program.
Thanks to our fantastic volunteer support, our amazing Ambassadors and Champions, and the incredibly generous donations made by our Matcher / Major donors and by you, our MOTL community, we are thrilled to report that our campaign was a HUGE SUCCESS, having raised over $180,000.00 during the course of the day! We could not have achieved this incredible result without you, and thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued support of March of the Living Australia and our work! |
#MOTLGivingDay2022 #SeeForThemselves |
Official Registration for our 2023 Programs opening soon!
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We are pleased to announce that official registrations for our 2023 Adult and Young Adult programs will be opening very soon - stay tuned! In the meantime, if you have not already done so, we invite you to submit your no-obligation Expression of Interest for our 2023 programs by clicking on the button below and completing your details on the form. |
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Would YOU speak up for what is right?
- with Liz Wiemer
Online Event - Sunday 18 September
at 7:30pm AEST
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Author Liza Wiemer found herself in the small US town of Oswego, NY, where a teacher had given an antisemitic assignment requiring students to pretend they were Nazis and advocate for the Final Solution of the Jewish Question. It hit the news and went viral. What transpired afterward led her on an incredible journey, helping to make a profound difference to help stop antisemitism in schools across the US and making an impact across the globe. For this special online event, Liza will share behind-the-scenes information and research, and connect the Holocaust to what is transpiring in society today. Join us for this interactive event that will inspire and empower you to find your voice against antisemitism and other forms of bigotry, hatred and injustice.
*SPECIAL GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT*
By registering and attending this special event, you will automatically be entered into the draw to win a signed copy of Liza's book 'The Assignment'. Each registrant will receive 1 entry, and each participant will receive an additional second entry into the raffle, which will be drawn following the event. *Please note, the raffle is only open to registrants/attendees based in Australia. |
Liza Wiemer is an award-winning educator with over twenty years of teaching experience. Her second young adult novel, 'The Assignment', was published by Delacorte Press and has received numerous honours, including being named a 2021 Sydney Taylor Notable Book. To date, 'The Assignment' has also been published in Russia, Poland, Italy, Australia and Korea.
Liza received the honour of being named one of "The Top 100 People Positively Influencing Jewish Life, 2021" by the Algemeiner. A graduate of UW-Madison, Liza has two married sons and lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with her husband, Jim. |
2022 Australian Society of Polish Jews & Descendants Oration & Film Premiere
SYDNEY - Sunday 11 September
at 4:00pm AEST
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The many meanings of "Never Again"
- with Ittay Flescher
Online Event Recording |
On Sunday 21 August, we welcomed Ittay Flescher, Jerusalem Correspondent for Plus61J Media and the Education Director at Kids4peace Jerusalem, for a fascinating and insightful exploration of the many meanings of "Never Again". With this being such a common phrase in contemporary Jewish discourse, Ittay explored how the memory of the Shoah is used from all sides of the political spectrum to further a range of agendas that sometimes have little resemblance to the Holocaust itself, while also asking when it is appropriate to invoke the phrase "never again" for social and political advocacy.
This was a truly enlightening event, and we warmly invite you to click on the image below to view a recording of it. |
Recent MOTL Meetings and Events
around the community
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Alex Kats, one of the valued members of our Committee of Management, recently met with His Excellency Mr. Amir Maimon, the new Ambassador of the State of Israel to Australia. During their meeting, they discussed the relevance, importance and meaning of the March of the Living program, particularly for Mr. Maimon who served as Israel's first Ambassador to Lithuania.
Mr. Maimon also expressed his eagerness and commitment to talking at a future MOTL event and sharing his experiences in Lithuania and his continued involvement with and interest in Holocaust memorialisation. We very much look forward to hosting Ambassador Maimon in the near future! |
Pictured (left to right): His Excellency Mr. Amir Maimon, Ambassador of the State of Israel to Australia, holding a copy of our newly-designed promotional brochure (by Adrian Elton Creative), and Alex Kats, member of March of the Living Australia's Committee of Management. |
Pictured below are Cedric Geffen, President of March of the Living Australia (left), Mr. Allan Lilly, CEO of Jewish Care Victoria (middle), and Alex Kats, member of MOTL Australia's Committee of Management (right). The three recently met to discuss the wonderful alliance between Jewish Care Victoria (JCV) and March of the Living Australia, whereby 2 members of Jewish Care's staff have been sponsored annually by the organisation to attend the Adult March of the Living program ever since Bill Appleby (JCV's previous CEO) and Michael Debinski (previous President of the JCV Board) went on the program in 2014. The trio recently met in order to update Mr. Lilly on the history of the fruitful alliance as well as the current plans for our 2023 programs, and to reinforce our desire, interest and commitment in broadening and continuing the alliance.
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Cedric Geffen, March of the Living Australia's President, was invited to give a talk at the Adelaide Holocaust Museum & Steiner Education Centre (AHMSEC) on Sunday 28 August, and we are honoured and privileged to advise that the Founder and driving force behind the establishment of the AHMSEC, Andrew Steiner OAM - Survivor, Sculptor and Holocaust Educator extraordinaire - will be joining us on the March of the Living program in 2023. |
Pictured (left to right): Andrew Steiner OAM and Cedric alongside a sculpture by Andrew - a depiction of the iconic Holocaust photograph of the young boy with the Star of David on his jacket and his hands raised in the air, which adorns the exhibits of so many Holocaust museums around the world. |
We would like to take this opportunity to wish a hearty 'Mazal Tov' to two of our alumni - Hayley Blode (2009 Student Participant) and Ben Scholl (2013/14 Madrich) on the arrival of their baby boy, who was born on August 24th - what beautiful news, which is a great source of 'nachas'/pride for us here at MOTL! Wishing them boundless joy and many smachot as they embark on this new and exciting chapter of their lives! |
Pictured: Ben Scholl (centre) alongside his fellow madrichot on the 2014 Student March of the Living Program
If you or any of your family/friends (MOTL Alumni) have recently celebrated a simcha or significant milestone - wedding, birth of children, special birthdays - we would love to hear from you! Please send us an email (and include any photos, if available), and we will gladly share your news in our future newsletters. |
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 always, we warmly invite you to follow us on social media by clicking on the various
Socials bubbles below, so you may keep updated with all our daily posts and news.
We also kindly invite you to share this Newsletter and encourage members of your networks
who may be interested in receiving it to subscribe via the bottom of the Homepage
on our website - www.motl.com.au
We greatly look forward to being in touch again next month! |
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Our mailing address is: PO Box 268
Elsternwick
Melbourne 3185
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