Beit Hatfutsot's My Family Story 2020 Beth Tfiloh Curator Statements Fur
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Beit Hatfutsot's My Family Story 2020 Beth Tfiloh Curator Statements Fur Goes Far: Debra B. ‘24 This portrayal of my family’s story depicts the fur coat shop that my great-great-grandfather worked at through hardship and adversity. In August of 1904, my great-great grandfather left his family and two kids in Ukraine to escape the pogroms and other anti-Semitic acts which made it hard to live safely as a Jew there. He went and sailed on the S.S. Louis to Ellis Island and then came straight to Baltimore to look for a job. He found a job at a fur coat shop in downtown Baltimore and worked there for a while to save money to send back to his wife and two kids so they could come to Baltimore. I have recreated the fur shop using various materials and symbolism. For example, I put a small Israeli flag at my great-great-grandfather's desk to represent how he was openly Jewish in America and was proud of his religion. If the pogroms hadn’t attacked Ukraine and caused my great-great-grandfather to relocate, my family would have stayed in Ukraine, and a long line of Deitchs, Sugars, and Barrons would have never ended up in Baltimore. Fur goes far. I am surprisingly grateful things worked out the way they did, as I would not have met the people who inspire me, and I would have never found my home sweet home. The Empire Rival: Hannah B. ‘24 My Family Story display shows the ship that my great-grandparents, their two children, and my great-great-aunt and uncle were on. The ship, called the Empire Rival, was a ship that left Europe as part of the Exodus group to Israel. My family lived in Poland but when Hitler rose to power and invaded Poland, they left for the Soviet Union and started a new life. My great- grandparents even had a child in the Soviet Union who is my great-aunt Leah. Their life wasn’t perfect but then my great-grandfather was drafted into the army. He was almost killed in the Red Army at the front but managed to survive with the dedicated nursing of my great-great-aunt and great-grandmother. After the war ended my family boarded the Empire Rival heading for Israel. On this trip, my great-grandmother was pregnant and gave birth to a little girl named Tikvah (who is my grandmother). She was a British citizen because she was born on their “land,” so the family was let in, unlike the many other families on the ship. The project I made is the ship that brought my family to Israel. This project is not only important because it reflects my connection to Israel and my Jewish identity, but it also shows how my family are survivors and can get through anything if we try hard enough. From Ukraine to Baltimore: Edward B. ‘24 This is a representation of my family's move to America. In 1977, my dad and his parents moved from Ukraine, Soviet Union to Baltimore, Maryland. My project represents the plane that took them all the way to Baltimore from Kiev, Ukraine. For this project I used papier-mache, paper, cardboard and paint. This relates to my Jewish identity because in the Soviet Union you were not allowed to be Jewish. If it were not for the fact that my dad's side came to America I might have not been born and had the opportunity to be Jewish. I am happy that he made the move from Ukraine. World Connections: Samantha B. ‘24 My Family Story display shows the two sides of my Jewish heritage – Ashkenazi and Sephardi – and the places from which they came. My Sephardi heritage comes from Iran. My mom and her parents came to the United States as refugees in 1980 following the revolution. They settled in Ohio after my mom’s father found a job in Cleveland. To represent my Sephardi heritage and customs, I decided to use a Sephardi Torah. I made the Sephardi Torah from a roll using wooden knobs on the top and bottom. My Ashkenazi customs are from my dad’s side of the family. My dad’s paternal grandfather and grandmother grew up in Poland and immigrated to the United States after surviving the Holocaust in 1949 and 1947, respectively, from Germany. My dad’s maternal grandparents were born in New York, but their parents immigrated from Eastern Europe in the early 1900s. To represent the Ashkenazi customs of my family, I decided to use an Ashkenazi Torah. I took a slightly flattened roll, and covered it in fabric, adding wooden knobs to the top and bottom. Finally, to represent the various places from which my family came, I have a semi globe with Eurasia and North America on it. I pinpointed the places of origin, all leading to Baltimore, where I live currently. Will You Take the Apple? Emma B. ‘24 The project before you is a depiction of an apple that one of my distant relatives, Éva, refused to eat. Being captured by the Nazis, Éva was put in a ghetto and had to leave her mother behind to die. The rusty gates represent the gates of the Budapest ghetto where Éva was confined. However, they are left open to show how she escaped the ghetto to find her mother. She was able to escape by piecing together a nurse’s outfit and took two injured people to a hospital outside of the ghetto. On the way to find her mother, she saw a half-eaten apple on the ground. The apple before you depicts the apple Éva found. As I said earlier, instead of picking the apple up and eating it, and even though she must have been very hungry, Éva withstood the temptation to eat the apple. This part of my story stood out the most to me. For someone around my age, the courage she was able to conjure up to leave the ghetto despite the consequences really resonates with me. She not only had the bravery to leave the ghetto, but she had such a strong mindset. Éva refused to eat the apple because eating it would mean the Nazis won. That is what they wanted, which was to turn humans into animals, with no dignity for themselves. This story taught me that no matter what happens, you need to stay strong and keep your dignity as a human being. The Refugee: Alden B. ‘24 My Family Story shows my grandmother, Rena Block, escaping Sarajevo during the Holocaust. She had to leave her home in Sarajevo when the Nazis arrived, and they fled to Italy. While in Italy they lived in a “camp” with other Jewish people. The Americans came and freed them, and she and her parents were selected to go to America on a boat to Oswego, New York with 979 other refugees. In my project, I have a boat representing the ship that my grandmother took to get to America. I have flags representing her home country, Sarajevo, and the Italian flag. The ship was really hot and cramped and people got ill. Additionally, the passengers were served food that they had never tasted before. The chewing gum on the boat represents how my grandmother thought that chewing gum was odd because it was food that you couldn’t eat. Once she arrived in America she was brought to Oswego, New York. I have buildings representing Oswego, New York that my great grandmother came to from Italy. Oswego was a military base that was surrounded by barbed wire. My grandmother called Fort Oswego the “Golden Cage,” so the wire around the city is a symbol for this. When my grandmother lived in Sarajevo, she said her family was not very religious. When her family was escaping the Nazis, her father made a pact with God that if they were safe then he would become more religious. She and her family believed that God helped them to survive while others did not. They moved from Oswego to Baltimore and had a good life. They had more faith in God. A lesson my grandmother taught me from her experiences is to appreciate what you have in your life. Following her Jewish beliefs and traditions was always important to my grandmother. She shared her love of languages, food and stories of her past, so we never forgot what she lived through. The Gift that Keeps on Giving: Yoni B. ‘24 My Family Story isn’t quite a story. It is a tradition that has been passed down through my family for many generations. That tradition is leining the Torah. Reverend Solomon Ruback taught my grandfather, Sheldon Berman, how to lein the Torah. From the time I was born, the plan was that my grandfather would teach me how to lein from the Torah for my bar mitzvah. Unfortunately, he passed away in October of 2012, when I was only seven years old. So, I am creating this project in memory of Sheldon Berman (my grandfather). As you can see, on my project there are two hands holding a Yad – one hand is representing my grandfather's and one is my hand. This shows how reading the Torah is being passed down through my family. The older hand on the bottom represents the foundation of learning. The Torah portion on my project is opened to, Yitro, my bar mitzvah parsha. In Jewish tradition, all learning is passed from generation to generation.