As part of a yearly program to commemorate Kristallnacht, on Thursday, Nov. 7, Solomon Schechter Day School of Bergen County will host a screening of the award-winning film, “Bogdan’s Journey,” which recounts the story of a Catholic Pole who launched a crusade to reconcile Poles and Jews over a massacre that happened 69 years ago, the Kielce Pogrom.

There will be a reception at 6:30 p.m. followed by the film screening, and then a Q&A from 7 to 9 p.m. featuring the film’s producer, Lawrence Loewinger, and Steve Montag, the son of Kielce Pogrom survivor Esther Montag, z”l, and father of two SSDS alumnae.

This program is presented by the Morris & Ruth Kotek z”l Holocaust and Heritage Resource Center, which is housed at SSDS, and marks the beginning of the eighth-grade Holocaust studies curriculum.

Beryl Bresgi, the Shoah studies director at SSDS, emphasized the importance of this community event.

“What happened during the pogrom is not about Jews against Poles, but about person against person,” Bresgi said. “This film brings to light the humanity of acknowledging past wrongs and being able to move forward. The idea of not holding onto those prejudices and trying to really look at what was done to heal delivers a powerful message at this time.”

Steve was touched by the school’s gesture to honor his mother’s memory. Esther returned home from the war in an attempt to piece her life back together. Instead, she was faced with the hatred and anti-Semitism that still lingered amongst the Poles of Kielce, and forced to leave behind the town she had known.

“Unfortunately, those events molded her life and memories,” Steve said. “She tried to continue to live her life in a positive way but to never forget what hatred can do. This film in particular sends a poignant message of how hate still exists, and we all need to continue to strive to eliminate it wherever we can.”

RSVP to Michelle Weinraub at [email protected] by Nov. 4.

By Elizabeth Zakaim