3Gs and Community Speakers

The Center for Holocaust, Genocide, and

Human Rights Education of North Carolina

&

Holocaust Speakers Bureau

Rabbi Michael (“Mike”) Stevens

3GNC: Voices of Remembrance

Roni Rosenthal

Steve Goldberg

Community Members telling our stories

Holocaust Topics:
Historical background on the Holocaust

Description of Presentation:
Together with his wife Judy Stevens, a Hungarian-born child of Holocaust survivors, who tells the stories of her parents before, during, and after the Holocaust, Rabbi Stevens adds the historical context.

Age/Grade Appropriateness: Middle school through adult

About the Speaker:
Rabbi Stevens has been teaching about Judaism and the Holocaust as a congregational rabbi for 40 years. He and his wife have given presentations to students and adults numerous times.

PLEASE CONTACT SHARON HALPERIN TO ARRANGE SPEAKER PRESENTATIONS.
sharonhalperin88@gmail.com. 919-414-3211

Third generation (3G)

Holocaust Topics:
Holocaust in Romania, Bucharest and Iasi pogroms, Romanian prison, Romanian labor camps, poems from prison, silenced stories

Description of Presentation:
Roni discusses her grandmother’s cousin, Friddie Stoleru, whose husband disappeared just a few weeks after their wedding in 1940 in Romania. Friddie was wrongly accused of espionage and spent the next nine years in a Romanian prison, followed by four years in a Romanian labor camp, only because of her Jewish heritage.

This presentation will cover Friddie's story, including family research that has been conducted, Friddie's uncle David's story, who was murdered during the Iasi Pogrom in June of 1941, and some of Friddie's poems that were written while she was in prison.

This presentation will also cover the major historical events that took place in Romania leading up to and during World War II, including the Holocaust, and the fascist-dictatorial regime that has been part of Romania for so many years.

Friddie's memoir, titled "Where the Lilacs Bloom Once Again - Friddie's Story" https://a.co/d/4M32c5C was published in 2022 and received 13 book awards. It gained attention from international media and served as a platform to share silenced stories from Romania.

About the Speaker:
Roni Rosenthal was born in Haifa. Roni is the Director of Judaic Studies and Professor of Language and Literature at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

Friddie’s story has been shared many times during the past few years, including at the Gaithersburg Book Festival, the New Jersey Public Library, the Nova JCC, Hebrew Homes, Jewish congregations, local schools, and book clubs.

Age/Grade Appropriateness: 8th grade through adult

Holocaust Topics:
One survivor’s story of ghetto life, separation from family, slave labor camps, and liberation

Description of Presentation:
Steve tells the compelling story of Holocaust survivor Abe Piasek. Steve was so taken by Abe's story when he heard it one day when Abe visited the school at which Steve was teaching that he took time away from the classroom for a few years to tell Abe's story of survival. Abe’s story went untold for nearly 50 years and lives on through interviews Steve conducted with him, along with video clips of Abe's various speeches. Steve provides context for those clips, including maps and artifacts, to help audiences better connect with Abe's story.

Age/Grade Appropriateness: 7th grade through adult

About the Speaker:
Steve taught high school students about history for more than two decades, and relates particularly well to high school and college audiences. He has shared Abe’s story with more than 120 audiences (over 6,000 people) over the past three years. More details are available at www.MyFriendAbe.com.

Mission Statement

We are the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, committed to preserving the powerful stories of resilience,

courage, and survival. Our mission is to educate the North Carolina community about the Holocaust by

bringing personal histories into the classroom that teach powerful lessons of hope, understanding, and

human dignity.

Through thoughtful storytelling, educational outreach, and community engagement, we aim to:

Preserve the authentic memories of Holocaust survivors

Combat Holocaust denial and antisemitism

Promote understanding of historical trauma and resilience

Inspire future generations to stand against hatred and injustice

Call for Volunteers

We are seeking passionate 3Gs (Grandchildren of Survivors) who want to:

Share their grandparents' stories or support the organization from behind the scenes

Receive training on how to effectively share this story with various audiences

Join a supportive community of descendants committed to remembrance

Email us at 3GNC.ORG@gmail.com

Website: In Progress.

Holocaust Topics:
Teenagers’ survival experiences during the Holocaust

Description of Presentation:
Graham’s presentation focuses on the experiences of several teenagers from various walks of life in Nazi-occupied Europe. He presents the story of a young girl struggling to survive in Auschwitz in the final stages of the war; another young girl who becomes a member of a partisan group; and a young boy hiding in occupied France. Graham's presentation is unique because he is in the same age group as the teenagers he describes.

Age/Grade Appropriateness: 6th to 12th grade

About the Speaker:
Graham is a first year student at Davidson College. He joined the Holocaust Speakers Bureau during his junior year in high school.
During his senior year, he designed lesson plans related to the history of the Holocaust and resistance. He was given the opportunity to teach an elective on the Holocaust which was offered to fellow seniors at Carolina Friends School.

Graham is willing to do his presentation either in-person (if feasible) or by Zoom.

Third generation (3G)

Holocaust Topics:
Kindertransport; refugees; concentration camps

Description of Presentation
Courtney’s grandmother, Judith, left Berlin, Germany on the Kindertransport in December 1938 just after Kristallnacht. She lived with a foster family in the English countryside to avoid heavy bombing in the city. Judith’s father, two aunts, and two of her siblings died in concentration camps. One of Judith's siblings survived internment at the Theresienstadt concentration camp/ghetto. Courtney inherited 30 years of her grandmother’s personal journals and essays. These writings address both childhood experiences from the war and the contrasting feelings of guilt and luck many survivors encountered. Courtney discusses topics such as the Kindertransport and the German Jewish refugee experience, including why Jews did not leave Germany. She also discusses how to prevent future genocide.

Age/Grade Appropriateness: 5th grade through adult

About the Speaker
Courtney Doi was appointed to the NC Council on the Holocaust in 2021. She participated in the 2019 NYC Summer Seminar through The Olga Lengyel Institute for Holocaust Studies and Human Rights. She has spoken to groups across the country in person and on Zoom, reaching more than 2,500 students of all ages. Listen to Courtney share the reasons she tells her grandmother's Holocaust story at: https://youtu.be/DNzQbkz9tQY