TABC held a powerful Yom HaShoah commemoration last week, weaving together student creativity, words of Torah and survivor testimony. The program centered around the aggadic story of Honi HaMe’agel and the Carob Tree, focusing on the climactic phrase O Chevruta O Mituta—“Either companionship or death”—underscoring the central role of memory and connection within our Jewish mesorah. This theme was embodied in the “Tree of Memory,” adorned with photographs of Holocaust survivors from the TABC community and yellow ribbons representing hostages currently held in Gaza. The tree served as a vivid symbol of the enduring Jewish commitment to remembrance and responsibility.
The assembly featured a candle-lighting ceremony in memory of the six million Jews murdered during the Shoah, stirring musical performances of “Ani Maamin” and “Matzileinu” led by Mr. Jacob Spadaro and the TABC Studio 1600 choir, and a moving keyboard rendition of the Schindler’s List theme performed by freshman Benjy Glanzman ‘28. The centerpiece of the program was the testimony of special guest Norbert Strauss, a 98-year-old Holocaust survivor, who shared his family’s harrowing experiences during the war.
In addition to the assembly, senior students showcased their Modern Jewish History capstone projects on Friday in a moving art and photo gallery. Their exhibition, designed to resemble a museum installation, featured depictions of the Warsaw Ghetto and Uprising, concentration camps, survivor stories and the Righteous Among the Nations. Students also contributed original artwork and a striking 3-D model of a crematorium, offering a deeply personal and visual connection to Holocaust memory.
As classes visited the exhibit, the thoughtful questions and reflections from students across all grades reflected the profound impact of the projects. The program emphasized that remembrance, as an act of chevruta, is essential to our sacred task of grieving our sorrows even as we await the redemption, captured in Tehillim 126: “הַזֹּרְעִים בְּדִמְעָה בְּרִנָּה יִקְצֹרוּ”—Those who sow with tears will reap with song.
