As we pulled into the driveway of the Museum of Tolerance, we spotted Ms. G enthusiastically waving at us from the bus, her smile lighting up the whole scene. Honestly, I still can’t wrap my head around why she picked our school, especially when there are so many better and richer ones out there. It’s like she saw something special in our little credit recovery program. I’m really grateful to Ms. G for making this trip happen because we’ve gained so much knowledge from our time at the museum. Plus, she arranged for us to ride in a fantastic charter bus instead of the usual drab yellow ones, which made the whole experience even more exciting. We truly owe all of this to Ms. G’s efforts.
I really enjoyed the start of our museum visit, where we delved into the Holocaust and other significant narratives. It was eye-opening to learn about ways to overcome, avoid, and prevent genocide. To make the experience even more engaging, we participated in a fun quiz competition to see who could answer the questions correctly. Once we wrapped up this informative session, we joined a group made up of students from different classes, and we discussed the significance of listening to and understanding other people's stories. I was paired with someone I had never met before, and we ended up having a meaningful conversation about our lives, which led to us forming a friendship that day.
As we kicked off our tour, each of us was asked to draw a random card featuring a child from the Holocaust. I drew Ebi Gruenblatt's card. Throughout the tour, we dove deeper into the stories of these children, and as I read about Ebi, I discovered she had three older brothers that she loved spending time with. It struck me hard when I learned that just before her 17th birthday, the Nazis arrested her family. It made me reflect on my own life, wondering how I would feel if my family faced such a fate right before my birthday. It’s a heavy thought, especially since I got to celebrate my 17th this year, while kids like Ebi were robbed of such moments. As the Holocaust progressed, Ebi and her mother were torn away from their family and sent to a camp, which is a gut-wrenching reality knowing that many didn’t survive. However, the silver lining is that Ebi ultimately survived the Holocaust and was able to celebrate her 18th birthday as a free person, which fills me with gratitude.
After our tour wrapped up, the Freedom Writers took us to an amazing deli called Factor's Famous Deli. While we were enjoying our meal, we had the chance to meet Holocaust survivor Renee Firestone's daughter Klaire, which was a real highlight. She shared some incredible stories about Renee, and we were able to ask her questions, too. Listening to those stories were a bit gut-wrenching, as it really hit home how much Renee had to endure during the Holocaust. Once we finished eating, we discovered that the original owners of Factor's, Herman and Lili Markowitz, were Holocaust survivors, too. Being in the presence of people who have triumphed over such a horrific chapter in history was truly inspiring. It made me think that if they could overcome such immense challenges, then surely I can make it through the ups and downs of high school.
We greatly appreciate the Freedom Writers for selecting our school and turning this into such an enlightening experience.