News Briefs - Fall/Winter 2006

2nd Anniversary of Permanent Exhibit:
Personal Story of Judge Cooley and
Open House of Exhibit and New Artifacts

Date: Sunday, November 5, 2006

Special Program: JCC Auditorium, 1:00 – 1:30 P.M

4:00 P.M. Cost: Free to the public

There will be a special program and open house to mark the second anniversary of the opening of our permanent exhibit, “A Reason to Remember: Roth, Germany 1933-1942”.

At the end of World War II in 1945, Judge Sidney Cooley was put in charge of Beyreuth, a small, out-of-the-way town in the American Zone of Germany. This town was a gathering place for many of the displaced persons from the war, primarily Holocaust survivors. As part of his assignment, Judge Cooley found housing for nearly 300 survivors and helped train them in agricultural work in preparation for their immigration to Palestine. During his time in Germany, he was presented with an award from the very people he assisted. Judge Cooley shares his intriguing story at 1 P.M.

Following this personal story, there will be an Open House at the Hatikvah Center called “Artifacts: Personalizing History”. There will be docent-led tours until 4 P.M.

There are many new artifacts on display, including Judge Cooley’s award and collection of pictures; close to 75 items on loan from Darrell English, a World War II collector from North Adams, MA; letters from the Hochster family in Germany to relatives who had escaped to South Africa; and other rare and important documents.

Also new added are a cap worn by a concentration camp inmate, a last birthday card sent from Germany to a niece the sender would never know, a wedding picture of long lost relatives, and a number torn from a concentration camp uniform.

These possessions were protected, concealed and often saved under extraordinary circumstances. When the witnesses themselves are no longer here to tell their stories, these artifacts are all that is left to speak for them, making them increasingly more important with each passing year.