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Carl,
It’s not enough to protect the artifacts that speak to the truth of the Holocaust. We must ensure people can see and learn from the remarkable artifacts that the Museum safeguards and the stories they tell.
Today, when people see personal objects from Holocaust victims, it humanizes this history and reminds us of the very real and deadly consequences of antisemitism. The victims become more than a statistic. They can be remembered as a child who hugged a teddy bear, a refugee who wore a dress on the ship she boarded to escape persecution, or a family who packed a trunk when they fled to safety.
This is why the Museum’s collection is one of the best tools for countering rising antisemitism through education. We preserve Holocaust artifacts and share the stories behind them—including with young people online. Your gift helps us preserve and expand our collection of Holocaust evidence, so we can share the lessons these items teach far beyond the Museum’s walls. |
| | One unforgettable artifact in our collection is this trunk, which belonged to the Berg family.
Sisters Inge and Gisella (Jill) Berg were nine and five years old, respectively, when a violent, state-sponsored anti-Jewish riot in 1938 spurred their family to flee Nazi Germany. Watch this short video about the Berg family for an example of how the Museum uses artifacts to teach Holocaust history and the dangers of antisemitism.
The trunk they took on their journey is now carefully maintained at our state-of-the-art David and Fela Shapell Family Collections, Conservation and Research Center. Through stories like theirs and the artifacts they and other donors have entrusted to our care, we teach the real-world consequences of antisemitism and memorialize the victims of Nazism.
With your support, the sisters’ memories of their experiences will live forever, as will the memories represented by other artifacts in our collection. We will continue collecting and conserving artifacts that help us confront antisemitism using Holocaust education. But this work requires great care and expertise. We rely on gifts like yours to grow and safeguard the world’s most comprehensive collection of Holocaust evidence. Please make your tax-deductible, year-end donation now. |
| | Sincerely, | Dana Weinstein
Director of Membership |
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| | Image: Sisters Inge, left, and Gisella Berg at their dining room table after hearing about the family's plans to emigrate from Germany, circa 1939. USHMM, courtesy of Kurt and Jill Berg Pauly; The Berg family packed this steamer trunk when they fled Cologne, Germany, in 1939. USHMM, gift of Jill Berg Pauly |
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