On Tuesday, October 24, the eighth grade at Yeshiva Tiferes Moshe was introduced to the Names, Not Numbers© program. One of the purposes of this program is for students to meet and interview Holocaust survivors. The Yeshiva has been part of this project for a number of years, and it is now the turn for this year’s eighth-grade talmidim to participate.
As the entire event was professionally filmed, Rabbi Don Pacht, menahel, opened the program with a brief introduction, followed by Rabbi Yaakov May, former menahel, who explained the project’s importance. Mrs. Tova Rosenberg, head of Names, Not Numbers, graced us with her presence and re-enforced why it was important that the talmidim participate in this project. She emphasized the importance that survivors’ stories should be heard. She also explained that the project is student-based, from interviewing to filming and editing, in order to bring forth these stories into documentary form.
The boys then watched a film clip of a student interview of a survivor. After the showing, Mrs. Shoshana Soroka, editor at The Jewish Home, talked to the talmidim about interviewing techniques. Afterwards, Yehuda Davidowitz, Moshe Deutscher, Efraim Koenig, and Benzion May were interviewed, describing their feelings about what they heard and saw.
Many thanks to Rabbi Becker and Rabbi Levine who helped make this event a successful one.