This Yom HaShoah, MTA hosted a meaningful program, which began with opening remarks from Head of School Rabbi Joshua Kahn, followed by senior Nadav Heller, who talked about his experience interviewing a Holocaust survivor as part of MTA’s “Names, Not Numbers©” program. The introduction closed with senior Gavriel Iskhakbayev lighting a candle in memory of the six million Jews who perished during the Holocaust.

Talmidim were then privileged to hear from a special guest speaker, legendary storyteller Rabbi Hanoch Teller. Rabbi Teller shared many inspiring Holocaust stories, highlighting the bravery, perseverance and determination of those who endured the atrocities of the concentration camps and encouraged talmidim to carry on their legacy. The program concluded with talmidim lighting 300 candles provided by Our 6 Million, an organization whose mission is to instill a family tradition to remember those who perished during the Holocaust. Each candle represented one of the six million Jews who were killed during the Holocaust and included a label with the person’s name and information on who they were and what they did prior to the Holocaust, as well as their dates of birth and death and a QR code that can be scanned to access more information. Talmidim took the time to read about each person before lighting their candles to keep their memories alive.