Mass. Teens Leave for 2017 ‘March of the Living’ Heritage Trip to Poland, Israel

This month, five Massachusetts teens are joining 10,000 others from around the world for a life-changing trip to Poland and Israel.

New England Chair of March of the Living (MOTL), Irv Kempner of Sharon, says “The target group for MOTL is high school seniors, a strategy to develop more engaged young men and women who know their history and the importance of the modern State of Israel. We want a new generation to learn the meaning of ‘Never again.’”

Annually, MOTL has been bringing these groups at the same time of year, just after Passover. Since 1988, MOTL has brought 250,000 teens to Eastern Europe and Israel, teaching lessons of the Holocaust and inspiring teens to lead the Jewish People into the future. Led by rabbis, historians, and teachers – and joined by Holocaust survivors -- participants study the history of the Holocaust and examine the roots of prejudice, intolerance and hate. Kempner, a retired business executive, is the son of Holocaust survivors.

The New England Chapter of MOTL has a newly redesigned website (https://motlnewengland.org/ ) where this year’s marchers will post photos to allow everyone to participate virtually. Kempner invites everyone to visit the site regularly for news and photo/video updates..

The Poland leg of the trip includes Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah in Hebrew) when participants walk across Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest concentration camp complex, hand-in-hand in silence as a tribute to all victims of the Holocaust. The second part of the trip takes place in Israel where marchers witness the miracle of the young country. Israel Independence Day occurs during their visit.

One of this year’s participants is Beatrice Fellman, a senior at Gann Academy in Waltham (Mass.) She has always attended Jewish day schools and was a camper at Camp Yavneh in Northwood, NH where this summer she will be a counselor. Beatrice says, “Last year I lost my grandmother, Marion Majer Katz, a Holocaust survivor. It has always been important to me to learn more about her background. Participating in March of the Living gives me the opportunity to make this journey in her honor and memory.” Next year Beatrice will attend Tulane University and hopes to study Psychology and Public Health with a minor in Hebrew. A 2016 participant said, “The March gave me an appreciation for Israel and allowed me to bond with Jewish teens from around the world.”

In a study of past MOTL participants, 95% said their participation strengthened their Jewish identity and their bond with Israel. Of special note, 20 years ago Jared Kushner, chief adviser to President Trump (and his son-in-law), participated in March of the Living.

MOTL New England has already started recruiting participants for 2018 and launched its scholarship drive with a Beatles tribute concert. Donations of $1,000 will be matched dollar for dollar by the Kempner Foundation. Tax-deductible donations may be made online: https://motlnewengland.org/.

To donate to the Friends of the MOTL Endowment Fund for Mass. teens, tax-deductible donations may be sent to: CJP – Kempner Family Foundation, c/o Combined Jewish Philanthropies, 126 High Street,

Boston, Mass. 02110. To ensure proper credit, on the memo line, write ‘March of the Living.’ For more information about donations and/or participation in Friends of MOTL and teen MOTL trips, contact IrvKempner@gmail.com / (617) 285-8620, or visit https://motlnewengland.org/ See highlights of the the 2016 trip at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKTIg5tl0Us .

• By Stanley Hurwitz / stanhurwitz@gmail.com