In the July of 2017, my secondary school received a visit from Susan Pollack MBE, a Hungarian Holocaust survivor.

Susan was born Zsuzsanna Blau on 9th September 1930 in Felsögöd, Hungary. She had one brother, Laci, and lived with her mother and father. In late May 1944, Susan and her family were sent by cattle truck to Auschwitz-Birkenau. After liberation, Susan found that Laci was the only member of her family to have survived: more than 50 of Susan’s relatives had been killed during the Holocaust. Susan has three children and six grandchildren. She now lives in London and regularly shares her testimony in schools across the country.

The talk was a priceless experience for me, one that changed my own path in life. It gave me a passion for learning History and teaching others, and I hope to make myself a career out of my passion. Before meeting Susan I was aware of  the events of her time- but textbook images never made it real for me. I am aware that I am perhaps of the last generation that can appreciate a survivor testimony, as remaining survivors are few and far between, so the importance of raising awareness of the issue is vital in ensuring such atrocities do not happen again.

 I am aware that this charity is rather obscure to most people, making it all the more important to raise as much as I can. My goal of £200 will enable the trust to give another school the experience which I was privileged to have, and potentially change the life of another student like myself. Anything more would add to that and enable even more people to have an experience that is valuable to their education. 

If I reach and go beyond my minimum goal of £200, I will willingly shave off my hair; an experience brutally forced upon the victims of the genocide. I am aware this will never amount to the experiences of people like Susan, but it is a short term sacrifice to make for such an important long term cause, and the valuable experience it would give other people. And hopefully it is a big enough incentive to donate as much or as little as you can! 

I am aware that in times like these it may be difficult to find the money or the desire to donate to a smaller charity, so I have placed no time limit on my fundraising. #Staysafe 

The Holocaust Educational Trust was established in 1988. Their aim is to educate young people from every background about the Holocaust and the important lessons to be learned for today. The Trust works in schools, universities and in the community to raise awareness and understanding of the Holocaust, providing teacher training, an outreach programme for schools, teaching aids and resource material. One of their earliest achievements was ensuring that the Holocaust formed part of the National Curriculum for History. They continue to play a leading role in training teachers on how best to teach the Holocaust.

A donation of…

£200 allows them to run an Educator workshop in a school, building on survivor testimony and exploring the complexities of the Holocaust

£120 covers the cost of one Ambassador to attend their annual Ambassador Conference

£50 helps a teacher to attend an enriching CPD day

£20 can provide a travel subsidy for an Ambassador to attend the Ambassador Conference or a Study Day