Welcome Students
One and one half million Jewish children were lost in the Holocaust before they had a chance to grow into Jewish adults, most before their own call to the Torah.
This is an invitation to bring the memory of one specific lost child with you as you become bat/bar mitzvah. So long as we live and remember, their memories will live. The simple act of remembering someone honors that person's value and meaning, and adds meaning and value to your own life.
The Remember Us program is simple. You will receive the name of one lost child and whatever information is known about him or her.
As you prepare for bar/bat mitzvah, keep the memory of the child in your thoughts however you like. When you do a mitzvah do it b'shem - in the name of the child whose memory you are carrying.
At your bar/bat mitzvah speak the name and tell the story of this child in whatever way you choose as you stand on the bimah in front of the Torah.
Go to Stories of Remembering and Ideas to read about what other students have done to remember the lost children.
So long as we live / they too shall live / for they are part of us / as we remember them.
A Special Note
Your participation in Remember Us helps mend the torn fabric of Jewish history. It is as if the life story of the child you are remembering now continues through you, your family, and your community. Your commitment becomes part of that child's biography. The good that you do in the child's name becomes part of his/her life story as well as your own.
You can help build the continuity of this story by adding to the culture of memory.
- Tell your friends, family about remembering
- Participate in Yom Hashoah
- Provide ongoing financial support for Remember Us, in any amount
- Involve the next rising cohort of children in your congregation or community
Through your good works, we make real our traditional phrase about the remembered children, "May his/her memory be for a blessing."