by George J Elbaum

Educators for Change (EFC) is a group of dedicated educators who have committed to taking an active role in Holocaust education in Washington state and inform the educational programs and resources of the Holocaust Center for Humanity.  Teachers are selected by the Holocaust Center based on their engagement, qualifications, geographical location, and commitment to Holocaust education.  The Holocaust Center strives to provide EFC with deepened knowledge, not only about the Holocaust but other considerations, such as the challenges of teaching its lessons successfully, as well as a community for collaborative purposes.  At the same time EFC provides the Center with invaluable feedback and input that helps guide its decisions about its programs and resources.

EFC’s membership is approximately 40 educators in total, ranging from upper elementary to college educators, and its sessions typically have 30-35 attendees, which is quite remarkable currently given teacher burnout this year due to Covid.  My presentation to EFC was organized by Paul V. Regelbrugge, the Holocaust Center’s Director of Education, at the invitation by Ilana Cone Kennedy, its Chief Operating Officer.

One very pleasant “re-connection” for me was with Rosemary Conroy of St. Luke School in Shoreline, WA, where I spoke November 11, 2011, barely one year after my very first talk.  To my great surprise, Rosemary and her class presented me with a child’s red tricycle, which I describe in my book as my present for my 3^rd birthday in Warsaw in 1941, which is my very, very first memory!