The Holocaust centre at the heart of a Yorkshire university campus is hosting a social event on 20 March to unite Jewish communities in the county.
The event is part of Holocaust Centre North’s recently launched communities programme, in honour of Rudi Leavor, one of the 16 Shoah survivors whose story is told in centre’s permanent exhibition ‘Through our Eyes’.
Rudi was passionate about bringing people from different faiths and communities together and this new area of work for Holocaust Centre North seeks to do just that – to create opportunities through its living archive on Holocaust education and remembrance and the creative arts, to connect with people from all walks of life.
The bagel and chat event at the centre’s University of Huddersfield base is for people who are Jewish or of Jewish heritage. It’s part of a new series of opportunities for people from different backgrounds and groups to get more involved and come together to be a part of its community outreach.
Archive Picnic photo Courtesy of the Schatzberger Family.
Local Huddersfield resident Robert recently moved to the area from London and is keen to meet more like-minded people to establish a local Jewish community. He wants it to be socially and culturally based rather than having religion as its central focus.
He said: “Jewish people tend to join synagogues to associate with other Jews, however, I am hoping that local people might want to meet with others on a non-religious basis, to connect socially with our roots and culture. This could include any residents from a Jewish background, together with any non-Jewish family members and those of Jewish heritage who would like to reconnect with their culture.”
Pic: Holocaust Centre North
Elanor Stannage, head of the communities programme says: ‘Holocaust Centre North was founded by survivors from the Jewish community in Leeds with a passion for bringing communities together in the name of shared understanding. So an important part of my work is to support and connect the Jewish community across the North of England. That is why we are so keen to support Robert in bringing together potentially disengaged Jewish people in Huddersfield and the surrounding area to help them re connect with each other and the culture.”
Alessandro Bucci, director of Holocaust Centre North adds: ‘As part of our latest piece of community engagement work we are bringing communities together in an effort to foster understanding, dialogue, and human connection. Supporting the development of the Jewish Community within Huddersfield and in the wider district is part of this. We want to use our voice to bring people together in the present, to ensure that Holocaust education remains a force for good in today’s world, and to foster greater compassion and awareness of the struggles of others.”
- To attend the event or for more information on becoming part of the wider Huddersfield Community, contact [email protected] or click here for the Holocaust Centre North’s website.
