Housed within the Holocaust Resource Center, the HCSC’s mission and most important function is to educate others about the evils of discrimination and about the darkest period of the 20th century.
The HCSC programs are facilitates by Agnes Vertes, who is President of the Child Holocaust Survivors of CT and a Jewish Historical Society Board member. She is a vibrant and engaging speaker.
Among the 6,000,000 Jews murdered by the Nazis in Europe from 1939 to 1945 1,500,000 were children. Despite the desperate efforts of their families and communities, tragically, very few were able to survive. The Holocaust Child Survivors of Connecticut (HCSC) is an organization of individuals who were children during that period and were fortunate enough to survive the horror of Nazism and to build new lives in America.
The HCSC Speakers Bureau provides trained speakers to schools and universities, churches, synagogues as well as other community organizations. There is nothing more effective in making history come alive than an eyewitness account. Through vivid, live testimony, our members are able to add a deeper dimension to your school curriculum and a better understanding of the history in an age-appropriate sensitive manner. As time passes there are fewer and fewer of us and now you still have the opportunity to hear the stories of the last remaining survivors.
In addition to speakers the following educational materials produced by HCSC:
One Out of Ten. Produced by Agnes Vertes
One out of Tenis an award winning 45 minute documentary produced by Agnes Vertes in association with HCSC, available on DVD. One out of Ten provides an overview of the Holocaust through the stories of eight survivors from eight different countries, who were children at the time. Maps and actual documentary footage support the testimonies. A study guide is also available that includes historical background, a chronology of significant events, a glossary of terms and a suggested reading list. One out of Ten is especially effective with students because they are able to identify with children of similar age. To order please visitAgnes Vertes’s Holocaust documentaries
Childhood Memories: Jewish Children Who Survived the Nazi Peril Speak Principal Editor Hilde M. Scheraga
This 133 page collection of stories by 15 child survivors describes how Jewish children were forced to live in Nazi occupied Europe. Torn away from their families and living in constant fear and hunger they managed to survive. The book also includes a Discussion Guide for Teachers, a glossary, maps and recommended readings.
And Life is Changed Forever Holocaust Childhoods Remembered
Edited by Martin Ira Glassner and Robert Krell
A moving collection of 21 personal essays by survivors, who were children between the ages of 2 and 16 during the Holocaust. And Life is Changed Forever focuses not only on the stories of survival, but also the aftermath. These individuals became: teachers, engineers, physicians, entrepreneurs, librarians and distinguished professionals of all sorts and most of them consider building a family their greatest accomplishment. The book also sheds light on how the Holocaust impacted their lives.
