Hochtaunus pupils meet contemporary witness at youth seminar in Gilboa
Unique experience
Hochtaunus Pupils meet contemporary witness at youth seminar in Gilboa
Young people, teachers and employees of the district administration visited the twin town of Gilboa (Israel). They lived with Jewish and Arab host families and spoke to a contemporary witness of the Nazi era.
The students were offered a lot at the traditional youth seminar in Gilboa (Israel). The young people from the Hochtaunus district want to return the favour in the autumn and organize an exciting and varied programme for the return visit.
But first, of course, there are many great travel impressions. 13 young people, eleven pupils from the IGS Stierstadt and two from the CWS in Usingen, two employees from the Hochtaunus district and a teacher from the IGS took part in the trip.
„It is really wonderful to see how enthusiastic the children are about this time of youth exchange together,“ said Ania Auth, Managing Director of the partnership association.
During their stay in Israel, the participants lived with host families, not only Jewish ones, but also Arab ones.
The group visited Tel Aviv, Akko, Jerusalem and the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial.
However, they not only explored the well-known sights, but also had conversations with contemporary witnesses.
On the last day, the young people had the opportunity to meet the great-grandmother of one of the Israeli participants.
Escape to Palestine
The group listened intently to her moving story about her childhood and youth in Germany after the Nazis seized power, her difficult and dangerous escape to Palestine – now Israel – and her first years in a strange young country without her parents.
The Middle East as a whole is not a peaceful region. The students were therefore very impressed by the peaceful coexistence of Jewish and Arab villages in Gilboa, reports the partnership association.
The participants of the youth seminar in the partner city of Gilboa (Israel) gathered many exciting impressions. Photo: private