Kearsarge Regional Middle School hosts annual holocaust symposium

NEW LONDON – Superintendent Winfried Feneberg is pleased to share that Kearsarge Regional Middle School held its annual Holocaust Symposium this week.

The symposium was held on Wednesday, April 17 at Kearsarge Regional Middle School. For approximately 20 years, Kearsarge Regional Middle School has been hosting Holocaust speakers annually thanks to a grant from the Frank M. Barnard Foundation. Over this time period, it’s likely that more than 3,000 students have heard personal and family stories.

This year, speakers included Marika Barnett, Holocaust survivor; Henry Weinstock, Holocaust survivor; Dr. Jeanne Baer, Holocaust survivor; Jack Mayer, author of “Life in a Jar, the Courageous Story of Irena Sendler;” Trace Osborne, daughter of a Japanese internment camp survivor; and Melita Sedic-Lawton, a refugee from the war in Bosnia.

Kearsarge hosted the speakers on Tuesday night at a dinner organized by teachers and administrators. On Wednesday morning, speakers were greeted by eighth grade hosts, who led them to classrooms. The speakers later convened for a luncheon put on by parent volunteers.

Each speaker at the symposium gave two, one-hour presentations to small groups of students in classrooms. Students heard from two speakers and were able to ask questions and interact with honored guests.

The annual symposium aligns to the World War II unit eighth grade students are currently studying, and it precedes a trip students will take this spring to Washington D.C., where they will also visit the Holocaust Museum.

“It is incredibly powerful for students to hear the firsthand stories of witnesses and survivors,” Superintendent Feneberg said. “This symposium brings history alive for students, and puts faces to the events they’ve learned about. Thank you to the Frank M. Barnard Foundation for continuing to support this event, and to the speakers who shared their remarkable stories with our students.”