16/03/2022
On 23rd February 2022, Maralyn Turgel from Generation2Generation (G2G) gave a presentation to the Al-Hikmah Girls School in Luton on the story of her father’s experiences surviving the Holocaust. He had been born in Poland and on the outbreak of war in 1939 and for 3 years, he lived in the ghetto. In 1942, his name was on the Selections for forced labour and he was transported to a munitions factory where he was imprisoned for two years under brutal conditions. Eventually he was moved by cattle truck to Buchenwald and subsequent moves by train with no heating, food or sanitation. He saw many die from starvation and cruelty. When the final train journey eventually reached Matthausen in April 1944, there were forty-two left alive of an original two thousand souls. He weighed just five stone and the arrival of the Americans in May 1945 saw the start of a long rehabilitation for Sam, although many died as they were beyond help.
Maralyn said “The children were moved and mesmerized by his story. Most had never met a Jewish person beforehand and asked many interesting questions about being Jewish. One asked “Do Jewish ladies cover their heads like we do and can male members of the family see them without head covering? Another asked if my father managed to keep his faith after the war?
What a wonderful opportunity to explain our similarities and to promote good relations with these delightful students and their teachers!”
There were many letters of appreciation from the pupils to Maralyn for her presentation. One was moved to write “One day people want a world where everyone accepts each other and that there is no division between us”.
The following day, Lesley Urbach, also from Generation 2 Generation (G2G), was invited to speak to younger pupils about her family’s experiences during the rise of Na**sm in Germany. She told them how her mother and aunt were sent to Britain on the Kindertransport and how her grandparents suffered increasingly as antisemitism spread across the country.
The presentations have helped to strengthen further the good understanding and relations between the Muslim and Jewish Communities in Luton.
Maralyn says “It showed the children the dangers of extremism and how important it is to accept and to appreciate everyone’s differences, so that we can try to make the world a better place. This is one of Generation 2 Generation’s main aims.”
For more information about Generation 2 Generation see www.generation2generation.org.uk
