Would you like to print the images in this article As children in the Netherlands in 1942, Maud Dahme and her sister were sent into hiding by their parents when the Germans ordered all Jews in their town to report for transport to concentration camps. The girls survived as “hidden children,” living with Christian families and were eventually reunited with their parents but most of their extended family were murdered in the Holocaust I sat with Maud in her New Jersey home for a conversation about her life and work as an educator and advocate for Holocaust education and for a moment we stood together in her home surrounded by memories of the life she built after facing atrocities laughing it off as if it were impossible for an earthquake to happen there after a childhood deeply shaken and shaped by World War II has made it her mission for the last 40 years to tell her story; the message she shares with audiences will continue to reverberate beyond her lifetime For three decades after Maud’s family moved to the United States I never talked [about] who I am,” she explains and I learned it without much of an accent ‘Where are you from?’” So Maud built a life for herself until she learned in 1981 about New Jersey creating an advisory council on Holocaust education [I realized] how important it is to share my story and for people to realize this [the Holocaust] actually happened.” Maud continues to educate and help ensure we learn from the past “I think it’s so important for survivors to share their stories,” she says … But I think it’s so important for them to listen to a survivor it really brings it to life.” Maud points out that while young people have seen films or read books about the Holocaust to have someone who lived through it share their experience helps to build empathy by personalizing the history Conversations with survivors also give people opportunities to ask questions directly and engage in dialogue about a critical moment in our collective past “And that continues to motivate me,” Maud says I will continue to do this as much as I can.” Maud intentionally approaches her story from a place of resistance and resilience to tell not only of tragedy but also of the power of everyday people who made the choice to save lives in the face of incredible danger “I try to be very positive about something very negative,” Maud explains And I think students can relate to that because what we need in the world today is kindness and respect.” Maud emphasizes how people reached across differences to help one another “People risked their lives to save my sister and I,” she says they were Christians; we were human beings.” Maud admits that her mother was upset when she learned Maud was speaking about her experiences She recalls her mother saying: “You shouldn’t be doing that because it is going to happen again and you are putting their life at risk.” And in some ways Maud’s mother’s fears were not unfounded – antisemitism and acts of genocide continue to affect Jewish communities as well as others But Maud speaks because she knows the importance of having these conversations so future generations know what happened and can work toward a world in which people reject such hate I was fortunate to be a participant in the New Jersey Education Association’s Summer Seminar trip to visit Holocaust sites in Germany Czech Republic and the Netherlands – a trip that Maud has led annually since 1998 I was already teaching about the Holocaust experiencing the places where these events happened Prior to the trip, for example, when I taught about the Wannsee Conference – the place where “the Final Solution” to the Jewish question was decided by high-ranking Nazi officials – it was simply about the history I was struck by how a decision so brutal could be made in such a tranquil place changed the way I communicated about the events at Wannsee I could bring my experience to students and say: “I stood there I saw with my own eyes.” And that type of experiential learning enriches conversations and builds compassion in a more meaningful way Maud summarizes how the power of place enhances personal connection to the history and pedagogical approaches to teaching about it by explaining: “Yes teachers have seen the films and read the books and have had a survivor come in for maybe an hour or less And many teachers have also told me that after they’ve come back they’ve done wonderful things with their students and also they feel they can really teach it now because they’ve been there … So the students are benefiting from their teachers having been on this trip.” The visits have also inspired educators to bring the power of place to students through field trips to historic sites in their communities or even to Europe to re-create a similar experience These place-based engagements add deeper understanding and appreciation not just for the history of the Holocaust but also for local histories Holocaust education is a core component of New Jersey K-12 education. And that is largely thanks to Maud’s work with the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education and the 1994 Holocaust Education Mandate “We will be celebrating 30 years this month [April] of the mandate in New Jersey,” Maud says “We were one of the very first states to do this even from kindergarten to 12th grade.” Maud acknowledges that talking about the Holocaust we have our laugh days and our cry days … but there’s ways of communicating kindness and respect even [with] very young children.” Holocaust education is much more than learning about the atrocities that occurred – it is about building empathy and fostering a culture of dialogue and civil discourse that allows humanity to prosper we’re learning about a certain period of time which is so important also [when we ask] how does this come about And I’m hoping that through the teaching of the Holocaust and people sharing their stories of what they went through that people try to understand and really reflect and say ‘We’re going to have to change our ways.’” “Nobody’s free until everybody’s free,” Fannie Lou Hamer said in 1971 Holocaust education can help build understanding and solidarity across communities to address today’s justice issues Maud emphasizes this purpose and encourages intergenerational dialogue to foster empathy She acknowledges that young people often receive messages from adults that can be prejudicial By modeling civil intergenerational dialogue Maud hopes to influence adults as well and help to shape the way we engage with one another – by centering humanity and working toward a better future Maud asked teachers to encourage parents and caregivers to listen to her talk with children so her story would also influence the adults Parents and caregivers need to be part of the conversation can be discussed with children as young as kindergarten Children can understand kindness and respect and learn how to have dialogue and not continue the cycle of interpersonal prejudice and hate when interacting with others as they grow up And parents and caregivers can learn to teach and model as well Maud expresses her hope that “through all of our talking as survivors help people understand how we really have to care for each other And my story was classic because two families risked their lives It didn’t matter that they were Christians but our tree is growing again with new branches and new blossoms Because people cared so much and risked their lives to save us.”– Maud Dahme the farming community in the Netherlands where she was hidden during the war The people in Oldebroek wanted her to discuss her experiences in the church where she had gone every Sunday with the family who had hidden her as a little girl The visit brought Maud’s experience full circle as she reflects: “Here I stood 80 years later more than 80 years later … to tell my story And it was so emotional when I first started to speak I was choked up just thinking of what all these people sitting out there had done that I could stand here now some 80 years later and thank them I was moved to tears when Maud wrapped up our conversation by discussing a photo of her family Because people cared so much and risked their lives to save us And I’m forever thankful for that because I married And only because people cared so much and the goodness Maud and I continued to talk over a cup of tea I made sure to tell her how truly life-changing the Holocaust site visit trip was to me personally and to my practice as an educator It fueled my passion in this field and continues to be my guiding light in the work of social justice education Maud gave a humble smile in response and simply restated the importance of continuing to tell her story and her lifelong commitment to Holocaust education Chocolate, The Taste of Freedom: The Holocaust Memoir of a Hidden Dutch Child by Maud Dahme The Hidden Child A documentary from NJN – New Jersey Public Television and Radio Collection Classroom Closeup: Holocaust Remembrance survivor testimony has the power for deeper connection Our shared humanity is an essential building block for people to dialogue across difference and engage meaningfully in a democratic society today.  Maud was elected to serve as the chair of the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education – 40 years after being integral to its founding Maud’s story and her legacy will be akin to aftershocks of an earthquake And my promise to Maud is to remain steadfast in this work and continue to tell her story so it remains part of the narrative for generations to come.  Login or create an account to save resources to your bookmark collection A project of the Southern Poverty Law Center ©1991-2024 Of the approximately 1.6 million Jewish children who lived in Europe before World War II The educator and author will share her story of surviving the Holocaust and being a hidden child at 7 p.m six-year-old Dahme and her sister were separated from their parents in 1942 and placed in hiding for the remainder of World War II the sisters were reunited with their parents and emigrated to America in 1950 Dahme dedicated much of her adult life to education and specifically Holocaust education for both teachers and students in New Jersey She served for 24 years as a member of the state Board of Education The Taste of Freedom” chronicles her wartime adventures as well as her post-war experiences — reunion with parents marriage and time as a Holocaust education advocate She and her sister are among those featured in “The Hidden Child,” a 2006 documentary shown on PBS and at the Holocaust Museum in Washington students at Bayonne High School listened closely to Holocaust survivor Maud Dahme She spoke clearly and directly about her life as a Jewish child during World War II Dahme has spent the past four decades sharing her story to help students and teachers understand what happened and why it matters She was born Maud Peper in January 1936 in Amersfoort Her father and grandfather owned a restaurant at the tram station the Nazis ordered all Jews in her town to report for transport her parents arranged for Maud and her younger sister Maud and Rita were just six and four years old when they went into hiding They used false names and pretended to be Christian to the point they had no option but to eat bugs and tulips Maud once saw six Jews and the family hiding them executed by the Nazis who had also survived in hiding with the help of the Dutch underground and cousins in their extended family were murdered at the Sobibor death camp Maud became very ill and required months of rest to recover from the trauma In 1950, the family moved to the United States. They arrived through Hoboken, New Jersey Maud finished high school and later worked at Pan American World Airways They married in 1957 and had four children She learned English quickly and blended into American life That changed in 1981 when New Jersey formed a Holocaust education advisory council “I realized how important it is to share my story and for people to realize this actually happened.” Maud has worked to teach others about the Holocaust She served 24 years on the New Jersey State Board of Education She also became president of the National Association of School Boards chaired the Interstate Migrant Education Council and served for decades on the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education she was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame as an Unsung Hero Maud began leading annual trips for educators to Holocaust sites in Germany One teacher on the trip said that visiting the Wannsee Villa outside Berlin where Nazi leaders planned the “Final Solution,” changed how they taught the subject Maud explained why these trips matter: “Teachers have seen the films and read the books These experiences help teachers bring a deeper understanding to their students Some even plan their own trips for students to local historical sites New Jersey now requires Holocaust education from kindergarten through 12th grade This is thanks in part to Maud’s work and the state’s Holocaust Education Mandate “We’re celebrating 30 years this month,” Maud said She believes that even young children can understand important values like kindness and respect Maud encourages parents and caregivers to join the conversation she asked teachers to invite parents to listen Her goal was to help both children and adults learn “Nobody’s free until everybody’s free,” she said quoting civil rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer Maud understands that talking about the Holocaust can be difficult Her own mother feared that sharing the story might be dangerous “You shouldn’t be doing that,” her mother once said “We need to learn from what happened to stop it from happening again.” the Dutch village where she had once been hidden She spoke at the church where she had gone as a child while in hiding “Here I stood more than 80 years later to thank them,” she said the City of Bayonne held its annual Holocaust Remembrance Day at City Hall included clergy from the UJA Federation of Bayonne and St Politicians like Assemblyman Nicholas Chiaravalotti and those who tried to help the victims,” said city spokesman Joe Ryan “The best way to understand what happened during the Nazi era is to hear from those who lived through it.” A short documentary by Bayonne High School graduate Patricia Iannaci featured another survivor Manya was 14 when the Nazis invaded Poland She lost her family to the extermination camps and spent six years in concentration camps herself and a death march before escaping into the forest and being rescued by soldiers “It was a silent war,” Manya said in the film She also shared a powerful message in her poem: “If it only takes one individual to start so much destruction The event ended with a candle-lighting ceremony and Sidra Tariq—lit candles on a Star of David in memory of the six million Jews who died in the Holocaust We provide you with the latest happenings in your neighborhood who led the Dahme Mechanical HVAC services division has two decades of experience supporting commercial "My entire team and the customers we serve are excited about becoming part of PremiStar," Simadis said "PremiStar's outstanding reputation and its expertise in HVAC and building control services will enhance our capabilities for current customers and provide new career development opportunities for our team." "I have known Eric for many years and am proud to welcome him and his and his team to PremiStar," says Gerry Grilec and trusted customer relationships are a natural complement to our business this will be a seamless transition with reciprocal benefits for all involved." PremiStar is transforming the industry by investing in leading regional owner-operators PremiStar supports owners and managers of critical facilities in commercial Bill Tamul Vice President, M&Abtamul@premistar.com‬‬‬617.480.2085 We’d like to share more about how we work and what drives our day-to-day business How we use your information depends on the product and service that you use and your relationship with us To learn more about how we handle and protect your data, visit our privacy center Read our editorial policy to learn more about our process Cape Girardeau has become a familiar place for solo artist -- and bassist for classic rock band Boston -- Kimberley Dahme Each of the last two years the Dahme wagon has rolled into town for Tunes at Twilight and drawn some of the concert series' largest crowds...By Matt SandersCape Girardeau has become a familiar place for solo artist -- and bassist for classic rock band Boston -- Kimberley Dahme Each of the last two years the Dahme wagon has rolled into town for Tunes at Twilight and drawn some of the concert series' largest crowds This year Dahme is bringing her show to the River City Music Festival where she'll be helped out by local musicians Bruce Zimmerman and Bob Ash on guitar Ken Keller on bass and Gary Nunnally on drums Earlier this week Dahme phoned in for an interview with SELive's Matt Sanders the third interview the two have conducted together Matt Sanders: So Cape's getting to be a regular gig Kimberley Dahme: Everybody there has been so kind to me but everybody's been so kind to me there There I totally feel at ease to be myself with the audience I feel better when I'm performing in Cape Girardeau and I can kind of go out on a limb with my music and if it's not rehearsed I don't really care MS: The Tunes performances have been solo gigs but this show will give a little more punch for your money MS: What's the difference between you doing a solo gig and this kind of gig with a full band Hopefully they'll have good harmonies for me I love harmonies -- a lot of my music is written for massive harmonies I've been doing this lately all around the country different towns I've been getting together with the local players but I never really incorporated here in the states as much but I'm just shocked at the talent to pull from KD: I still haven't really worked out Boston songs for myself although [Boston] had me sing lead last Sunday it will be more kicking with drums and bass and electric guitar kind of break it up and keep people wanting to hear more MS: How have things changed now in Boston after Brad Delp's death How are you guys moving into the future missing that superimportant piece Thankfully some time has passed since March 9 and we are moving forward pretty staggered there for quite some time Still I feel like I'm just kind of pulling out of it now There's a lot of people who want to keep the music alive We're all putting our lives back together MS: You've had some songs you wrote on a Boston album Tom put "With You." And who knows on this album -- I'm not sure yet I've ran a few by him and we'll just have to see MS: Are those songs different than your solo stuff I was shocked at the one he picked last time that doesn't sound like Boston at all I thought I was going to get tomatoed but instead everybody threw roses MS: Still to this day it has to be sort of surreal to be up on stage with those guys every time I'm stepping up on stage I'm just shocked I'm always stepping on the stage with what I consider royalty Connect with the Southeast Missourian Newsroom: Home » News » Former Aberdeen businessman fined $2.4M for unduly influencing woman’s decisions about assets A former Aberdeen businessman has been ordered to pay $2.4 million in damages following a civil trial concerning the will.. IGLOO – A former military munitions site with concrete bunkers now used as residences has become the source of numerous… There was an abundance of high-interest news across northeastern South Dakota in 2024 When Paul McDonald first received a copy of his great-great-grandfather’s journal detailing the time he served in the Civil War,…… IGLOO — David Streeter thought abandoning his traditional life to relocate into a survival bunker in South Dakota would allow… WHAT: West Virginia University will welcome Holocaust survivor Maud Dahme to campus to share her story during a public event being held in conjunction with this year’s Campus Read WHERE: WVU Mountainlair Ballrooms a six-year-old Dahme and her sister were separated from their parents in 1942 and placed in hiding for the remainder of World War II the sisters were reunited with their parents and Dahme has dedicated much of her adult life to education for both teachers and students in New Jersey where she served for 24 years as a member of the state Board of Education The Taste of Freedom,” chronicles her wartime and post-war experiences Now in its eighth year, the Campus Read, which is organized by the Honors College provides opportunities to engage the campus in a year-long discussion about the themes of a single book is a graphic novel that recounts experiences during the Holocaust MEDIA CONTACT: Lindsay WilleyDirector of Marketing and CommunicationsWVU Honors College304-293-2100; Lindsay.Willey@mail.wvu.edu Call 1-855-WVU-NEWS for the latest West Virginia University news and information from WVUToday Home » News » Former Robbie’s Bar demolished Wednesday Demolition of the building that used to be home to Robbie's Bar was Wednesday Recent demolition of what was left of the former Gary’s Auto shop on Sixth Avenue Southeast is just one example…… Aberdeen; free Parents Night…… Fourth-ranked Sully Buttes controlled both sides of the ball to capture the Class 9B state high school football championship with…… This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page The last time Lake Tahoe music fans saw Kimberley Dahme she was playing with “just another band out of Boston.” But it was a pretty big deal Boston sold 75 million records and has a slew of iconic radio hit songs Dahme played bass with the group for 10 years just one of the chapters in her life of music The 2014 show was at Harveys Outdoor Arena and the Doobie Brothers were the co-headliners will perform in a six-piece band for a singular performance at 7:30 p.m Wednesday in the Valhalla Boathouse Theatre at the Tallac Historic Site “I love this band and the guys are sounding amazing,” Dahme said and we might do a Boston song to get the crowd up on their feet a little bit I am working on a new project that I am getting ready to record One is a bluesy kind of Bonnie Raitt style and the other is more of an Adele.” For those who will fill the 150 seat venue on the lake Tahoe shoreline where she will savor family time until her daughter completes high school in May 2020 “I don’t want to miss her marching bend performances,” Dahme said I am really grateful to have a kid and rock and roll She later met famed producer and drummer Tom Hambridge and played in his band Hambridge has been the producer and songwriter for blues great Buddy Guy He also produced the debut for Christone “Kingfish” Ingram Dahme predicts “another Grammy” for Hambridge for the “Kingfish” album Hambridge brought Dahme on tour in 2000 after releasing the album “Balderdash,” which included vocals by Susan Tedeschi Dahme sang the Tedeschi parts and impressed a couple of concertgoers at a small Massachusetts venue: Boston’s Tom Scholz and Gary Pihl The were seeking a bass player who could sing lead and harmonies “I had no idea they would be there,” Dahme said “Tom waited in line for my autograph and he asked she performed with Boston at the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona Dahme appears with Boston on the 2002 studio album “Corporate America.” She survived and recovered from a serious skiing accident that put her music career on hold for a couple of years she played on a tribute album to Tommy Bolin “Mister Bolin’s Late Night Revival.” And she has two recent albums that were co-produced by Hambridge “Let’s Sleep On It Tonight” and “You Make Me Believe.” “This is me not working so hard,” Dahme laughed The guys are great at harmony and they have a really good concept of my music Privacy Policy  ·  Terms of Use  · Advertise with Us (BRICK TOWNSHIP) -- A former president of the New Jersey State Board of Education will share her memories as a World War II hidden child and Holocaust survivor at the Ocean County Library Brick Branch "Remembering the Holocaust: A Conversation with Maud Dahme" will take place on Monday Maud Dahme was six years old in 1942 when she and her sister were separated from their parents and placed in hiding by the underground Dutch resistance that opposed Adolf Hitler’s regime Maud and her sister were reunited with their parents after the liberation of the Netherlands in 1945 the family immigrated to the United States the Flemington resident devotes her energies to Holocaust and genocide education She remains active in the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education Maud Dahme’s career in education includes service on the state Board from 1983 to 2007 presidency of the National Association of State Boards of Education in 1995 membership in the Interstate Migrant Education Council including two terms as Chair and work for the North Hunterdon Regional High School Board of Education Please register online for this free program in OCL’s continuing “Combatting Hate” series, recommended for adults and seniors. For more information, stop by the OCL Brick Branch, 301 Chambers Bridge Road, visit www.theoceancountylibrary.org/events or call (732) 477-4513 Maud Dahme of Flemington with Northfield students For more events and information on the Holocaust Resource Center, visit Stockton.edu/holocaust-resource Click video to watch Maud Dahme's talk.   #            #           #  Contact:Diane D’AmicoDirector of News and Media RelationsGalloway, N.J. 08205Diane.D’Amico@stockton.edu609-652-4593stockton.edu/media Stockton University 101 Vera King Farris Drive Galloway, NJ 08205-9441 (609) 652-1776 Maps, Directions & Parking Accessibility Statement Additional Locations Northern State basketball lost a member of the family last week a longtime supporter of both men’s and women’s basketball died last week following a three-year battle with cancer His fervent devotion for Wolves basketball led him to travel to watch the teams wherever they played even as his illness became harder to deal with “His commitment to Northern and to Wolves basketball it’s just been phenomenal,” men’s head coach Paul Sather said “And as a student-athlete you recognize that You really recognize it when you see a guy that’s really suffering the way he was suffering who was a friend of Dahme’s for the better part of the last half century said Dahme and one of Dahme’s best friends were among Northern State basketball’s biggest fans “Those two guys would show up just about anywhere,” Fredrickson said Fredrickson said Dahme was so close to the program that each new team would be introduced to him and Mardian every season “Our players got to know him on a personal level because they’d see him at every game,” Fredrickson said we had three of our players that had graduated two years ago show up which gives you an idea of how much our players appreciated all the support he gave them over the years.” Sather remembered Dahme as more than just a friendly face in the crowd game-in and game-out Dahme became an inspiration to him and his team “Our guys knew he’d been hurting a lot and obviously fighting for his life and not always feeling great,” Sather said “And even to the point where he’s in a wheelchair and isn’t able to get around on his own it makes you feel like whatever’s going wrong with you it’s not that bad.” Fredrickson described his longtime friend’s significance to the team similarly “I think he was more an inspiration than anything,” Fredrickson said And people have a tendency to complain about a lot of the little things and here’s a guy in a wheelchair who has to be carted all over the place I think it meant a lot to our players just to see what lengths he was willing to go through to watch them play basketball and it made them appreciate a little more what they have.” Dahme’s love for the team extended beyond wins and losses Sather said that he simply was happy to be around the players and coaches he still had a smile on his face and found a way to try to pick people up and not make it about him and his problems,” Sather said He wanted to be there for the players and for our team For him just to go to those games wasn’t something that was easy like for you or I to go Fredrickson said Dahme’s devotion wasn’t dampened Fredrickson described what he got instead as “three basketball seasons” before he died last week “He was in the emergency room that Monday morning before our scrimmage (on October 17) and the doctor told him that he’d better go to a hospice,” Fredrickson said I’m going to the Northern scrimmage tonight.’ So Carlyle Mardian wheeled him in a wheelchair to our scrimmage that Monday night “And then that following week he really kind of deteriorated and just passed away here last week but he got his fill of Northern State basketball before he passed and treated everybody the way you’d want to be treated.” a native of Aberdeen and product of Warner High School was named the North Star Athletic Association Volleyball Attacker of the Week following a stellar week of play for Dakota State Rozell recorded double-digit kills and three matches last week as the Trojans went 2-1 She posted a double-double of 19 kills and 22 digs in a victory over Mount Marty on Oct In her next match out she had 11 kills and four block assists in a 3-0 sweep of Dickinson State Rozell finished the week with 17 kills and a .341 hitting percentage in a five-set loss to Jamestown (N.D.) on Saturday 35 digs and eight block assists for the Trojans Nathan Jones and Dylan Paulson had solid performance on Saturday and were rewarded for their accomplishments by the conference on Monday carried the ball 30 times for a career-high 190 yards and a touchdown on Saturday and was named the North Star Athletic Association Offensive Player of the Week for the effort He averaged 6.3 yards per carry and added three receptions for four yards was 4-for-4 on point after attempts and hit a 30-yard field gaol in the 31-21 victory over Waldorf Paulson added six kickoffs for a total of 310 yards and four punts for 130 yards Northern State’s Nathan Shaw has been named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Special Teams Player of the Week including seven point after attempts and a 20-yard field goal is 8-for-9 on the season on field goal attempts and 28-for-30 on point after attempts Bellevue (Neb.) received the top seed for both the men’s and women’s North Star Athletic Association soccer tournaments Both squads from Presentation will participate The Presentation women received the fourth seed and will face fifth-seeded Waldorf on Thursday at 1 p.m The winner of that match will move on to the semifinals on Friday against Bellevue (10-5-1 The semifinals will advance to the championship match 0-4 NSAA) is the fifth seed and will play fourth-seeded Viterbo in the opening round on Thursday at 3:30 p.m The winner of the match will advance to face tournament host Bellevue (10-6-2 4-0) in the semifinals on Friday at 2:30 p.m The other semifinal will feature Jamestown (8-8-2 A pair of losses last week caused the Northern State volleyball team to fall one spot in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 25 Poll Northern is joined in the Top 25 by Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference foes No Northern State will host Southwest Minnesota State on Friday and Sioux Falls on Saturday   BRICK – Holocaust survivor Maud Peper and her younger sister spent most of World War II hidden away on a farm in the Netherlands separated from their parents and forced to adopt new names and new identities while being concealed from the Nazis by the Dutch resistance   The girls were just 6 and 4 years old respectively and during a recent presentation at the Brick Library Maud Dahme (her married name) said she was forced to grow up quickly Dahme recalled her childhood and how life began to change for the Jewish residents after Hitler came to power in Germany especially after Kristallnacht (or the Night of Broken Glass) named for the shards of broken glass that littered the streets after the Nazis broke the windows of Jewish-owned businesses   “Every Jewish person had to register and anyone over 6 had to wear a yellow star,” she said “Every Jewish person who worked in government Jewish children were not allowed to go to public school.”   Signs designed to isolate the Jewish population started to appear that forbade them from using the parks their rabbi summoned his congregation to the synagogue to read a letter that was written by the German command   “The letter said there was wonderful news: the Germans were going to take the Jewish population away from the war scene that we should bring one suitcase or backpack and board trains that would take us east,” she said secretly visited with their gentile friend and they noticed the same letter from the German command on his desk   The deputy mayor had been working with the Dutch resistance who had been traveling all over the Netherlands asking Christian families if they would be willing to take in Jewish children   “Children are our first priority,” he said the only thing I can tell you is they live on a farm and we must have your answer by tomorrow morning.” the couple had to surrender their 4- and 6-year-old daughters to the Dutch resistance not knowing if they would ever see their children again   The sisters were brought to a local home and were woken up in the middle of the night and spirited through the woods to a train station in another town They traveled to an area of the Netherlands inhabited by poor and deeply religious Christian farm families who went by the new names of Margie and Rika Spronk were fortunate to end up spending the next three years with a kind childless couple who introduced the sisters as their nieces whose city home had been destroyed by bombs the sisters were with their “Aunt” in the farm’s pumphouse when a man and a woman showed up in the doorway who had survived the war by hiding in the Amersfoort attic of a friend’s car dealership Dahme recalled agreeing to go home with the couple “but if we don’t like you we’re coming back and staying with Aunt.”   There were 140,000 Jews living in the Netherlands before Germany invaded in May 1940 including some 15,000 who had fled Germany 107,000 Jews had been transported to the extermination camps according to the World Holocaust Remembrance Center More than 75 percent of Dutch Jews perished in the Holocaust   Dahme said that 24,000 Dutch Jews went into hiding and 16,000 of those were not discovered.   She has dedicated her life to educating students teachers and other groups about the Holocaust and ensuring it is not forgotten by speaking about her experiences as a young child in hiding and about the bravery of the resistance fighters   Dahme began her presentation by reading a passage from “Facing Memories: Silent No More,” by Holocaust educator and survivor Dr who said child survivors lived in silence after the war because silence served them well while in hiding   “Survival so often depended on not being noticed being inconspicuous on the ability to suppress tears and ignore pain,” Krell wrote Silence is the language of the child survivor but adults persuaded us to get on with life and forget the past inadvertently diminished the experiences of the children In the aftermath of that silence…what needed saying was not said.” and after the war when the sisters were reunited with their parents they never asked their daughters about the three years they spent apart   The family emigrated to the United States in 1950 but Dahme did not speak about her wartime experience until 1981 after a Holocaust denier criticized a program aired by 60 Minutes   “I’m so grateful for the people who risked their lives to save us,” said Dahme nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren   “Hitler did not succeed with our family tree,” she said but there are many new branches and blossoms.”  BORDENTOWN — Maud Dahme knows the Holocaust is real When someone she knew wrote in to “60 Minutes” to deny the Holocaust in 1981 decided she had to speak to her experiences Now, Dahme works with the New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education and speaks at schools including an engagement at Bordentown Regional Middle School last month “I don’t talk about violence or be graphic about some things I experienced or what I saw .. ,” she said of the genocide of millions Jews and other nationalities by the Nazis in Europe from 1933 to 1945 “I want to tell them two different families risked their lives to save my sister and I … it didn’t matter that we were Jewish and they were Christian.” The sisters were told the arrangement was a vacation on the couple’s farm “It wasn’t until that first evening … that they sat me down and told me why we were really there,” Dahme said She and her sister would survive by successfully pretending to be the couple’s nieces The girls did not know where their parents were for the duration of the Holocaust Dahme uses her story to remind students of the vital importance of having respect and care for others She said younger generations must learn about other cultures to develop understanding the more they learn to respect each other,” she said Respect is key in Bordentown special education language arts teacher Paula Mann’s lessons on the Holocaust she wants her students to understand life beyond Bordentown to be plugged in to what is going on in the world and stand up for what is right That starts with lessons about gossip and stereotyping and how rapidly everyday lives are changed when hate goes unchecked Survivor stories are a popular way of helping students understand the realities of the Holocaust and empathize recorded survivor stories will be the only resource people can gain that perspective For Michelle Blask, a sixth-grade language arts teacher at the middle school, the Holocaust has always loomed large because of her mother’s time in Auschwitz, a concentration camp near the German border in Poland where Jews were killed and forced into hard labor during World War II “Every experience was touched by the Holocaust,” she said or the sight of train tracks could spark negative memories “Their (survivor’s) biggest fear is forgetting and that it could happen again,” Blask said “I tell my students that it’s the most horrifying and the most known … (but) genocide isn’t just the Holocaust.” Mann and Blask teach their students about modern genocides Bordentown Regional High School history and genocide teacher Kevin Wright aims to emphasize that human behavior can be manipulated “What I hope students take away is that no society is immune to these atrocities,” Wright said There is no single wartime document created by the Nazis that gave an exact number killed during the Holocaust and World War II, according to the United State Holocaust Memorial Museum Estimates killed in the genocide include: up to 6 million Jews; about 7 million Soviet civilians of which 1.3 million were Jews; about 3 million Soviet prisoners of war of which 50,000 were Jewish soldiers; 1.8 million non-Jewish Polish civilians; roughly 312,000 Serbian civilians from the territories of Croatia Bosnia and Herzegovina; up to 250,000 people with disabilities; 196,000 to 220,000 Romas; at least 70,000 repeat criminal offenders; about 1,900 Jehovah's Witnesses; hundreds or thousands of homosexuals; and an undetermined number of German political opponents and resistance activists in Axis-occupied territory according to the Holocaust Memorial Museum A survey of Americans over 18 conducted earlier this year by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany found that: nearly 60 percent said an event like the Holocaust could occur again; 80 percent said it's important to educate people to keep it from happening again; and 93 percent said all students should learn about the Holocaust in school In 1994, New Jersey’s state legislature passed a bill requiring kindergarten through twelfth grade public school curriculum to include “issues of bias, prejudice and bigotry, including bullying through the teaching of the Holocaust and genocide,” according to the state’s website Blask and Mann said students usually enter their classes with a solid foundation to build further understanding of the Holocaust Most students across Burlington County graduate with an understanding of the Holocaust Bordentown high-schoolers can opt to take a summer trip to see Holocaust sites and learn from survivors At Rancocas Valley Regional High School, social studies teacher Sara Shelley won an award for her work teaching a genocide studies elective, according to a new release from the district. Guest lectures by survivors, like one held last week at Mount Holly’s Holbein Middle School, are frequently hosted in county schools The New Jersey Commission on Holocaust Education provides resources and guidelines to teachers, and also facilitates an annual summer seminar taking teachers to various sites of the Holocaust where they met Maud Dahme — the survivor was their guide on the weeks-long tour I felt I needed to share this with my students and as a child (of a survivor) I needed to see this mythical place .. to walk in my mother’s footsteps and understand how this evil could happen.” which included stops at Auschwitz and even at the small fishing village where Dahme spent the last months of the Holocaust reminded Mann of a quote — it said that reading history renders events in black and white Only when it is seen can history be in color Dahme said the 15-day trip takes teachers’ understanding of the Holocaust to a new level .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Tommy Rowan | The Express-TimesExpress-Times Photo | TOM ROWAN JR.Maud Dahme speaks to students today at Hackettstown High School about her experiences as a survivor of the Holocaust.Maud Dahme tries to be positive When she speaks to students across New Jersey about her experiences as a Holocaust survivor Dahme spoke Wednesday morning about her experiences as a "hidden child" who was spirited away to a Christian family that eventually saved her life who lives in New Jersey and serves on the New Jersey State Commission on Holocaust Education from 1942 to 1945 in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands change her name and give up school to stay safe She had to refer to her Christian keepers as aunt and uncle Her real aunt, uncle and three cousins, along with her Dutch grandfather and German grandparents, were taken in 1943 by train to an Amsterdam ghetto. They perished at the Sobibor Death Camp in Poland Dahme, a former member of the New Jersey State Board of Education, started speaking out about her experiences in 1982. She made a documentary about her experiences called "The Hidden Child" that was released in 2006 director of pupil personnel services for Hackettstown schools said hearing Dahme's story brings home the reason why we study history Dahme said what was scary about the experience was the constant fear -- "the constant fear that I was 6 years old and I knew why I was there and every night going to bed praying that I would live one more day Even today Dahme becomes nervous when she passes military vehicles on the road or hears planes soar through the sky like the ones that bombed her town spoke with Dahme after the speech to thank her for an inspirational message Dahme said she visits schools because she wants people to know there are people in this world who care Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, (updated 8/1/2024) and acknowledgement of our Privacy Policy, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/1/2025) © 2025 Advance Local Media LLC. All rights reserved (About Us) The material on this site may not be reproduced except with the prior written permission of Advance Local Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site YouTube's privacy policy is available here and YouTube's terms of service is available here Ad Choices .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Warren ReporterNorth Warren Regional librarian Linda Landau is pictured with Holocaust survivor Maud Dahme.BLAIRSTOWN — In a soft-spoken voice before a riveted audiences Holocaust survivor Maud Dahme spoke to the junior class of North Warren Regional sharing her memories of being a “hidden child” during World War II was born in Europe in 1936 during a time when conditions were becoming increasingly worse for Jews Because of its long history of religious tolerance many Jews fled to Holland after Kristallnacht Dahme explained to the students that at first things weren’t so bad but as time went on the regulations against the Jews escalated and Jews over the age of five had to wear a yellow star designed to humiliate and segregate them from the rest of society Holland’s Jewish population had become increasingly isolated and the situation for Jews had become extremely dangerous A Christian friend of Dahme’s parents urged them to send 6-year-old Maud and her 4-year-old sister the two little girls were sent away for three years to live with two different Christian farm families They were given new names and were told to never tell anyone they were Jewish Dahme has fond memories of the brave people who protected her and her little sister When the German forces surrendered in 1945 Dahme and her sister were reunited with their parents who managed to survive by hiding in the attic of a car dealership owned by Christian friends Both sets of grandparents died as a result of the Holocaust Dahme’s parents had no money or possessions after the war and had even destroyed their birth certificates before going into hiding she and her family left Holland for New York City She was working as a flight attendant when she met and married her husband Dahme now tells her extraordinary story to her own grandchildren the students gave Dahme a warm round of applause and asked many questions “Hearing her speak of her experiences during World War II is the closest I’ll get to experiencing history myself.” “In the one hour journey back into history Maud Dahme provided more insight into that era than any history book.” Today Dahme devotes her life to Holocaust education She tells her story to adults and children Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, (updated 8/1/2024) and acknowledgement of our Privacy Policy, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/1/2025) © 2025 Advance Local Media LLC. All rights reserved (About Us) Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site Ad Choices Embed on your websiteClose×Copy the code below to embed the WBUR audio player on your site<iframe width="100%" height="124" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" src="https://player.wbur.org/all-things-considered/2016/12/20/harold-israel-homer-cummings"></iframe> EmailThe Bridgeport Times front page 1924 (Courtesy of Bridgeport Public Library)This story was done in partnership with reporter Ken Armstrong at The Marshall Project People braved the winter chill to enjoy dinner out or to take in a show at one of the grand theaters actress Ethel Barrymore was about to take the stage at the New Lyric Theater Buster Keaton was performing a few streets over a real-life drama was about to play out in Bridgeport — one that would shake the city to its core A Catholic priest stepped out for his nightly stroll and had become a beloved fixture in Bridgeport since he took the post of pastor at St The man pointed a revolver by Dahme's ear and fired a single shot The gunman fled as Dahme fell face down on the pavement as fellow priests chanted the litany of the dead in the hospital halls Bridgeport Police came under intense pressure from the public and press to find the killer of the priest — a clergyman who blameless life; hated none and aided many." the day after Father Hubert Dahme was murdered (Courtesy Bridgeport Public Library)The newspaper quoted the city's mayor announcing plans to offer a $1,000 reward for information leading to the gunman's arrest and conviction: This repulsive crime instills fear in the hearts of every citizen and I am determined that the murderer shall not escape the clutches of the law Every force at the command of the municipality shall be thrown into the hunt for Father Dahme's slayer an officer in a nearby town noticed a young man he thought was acting strangely The man was Harold Israel from rural Pottsville He was a wispy 20-year old — barely over 5 feet tall He'd been honorably discharged from the Army a few months before Israel had been staying in a Bridgeport boarding house where he went to meet up with some Army buddies Four of them were loaded; one bullet had been fired Then Bridgeport cops interrogated him about the murder of Father Dahme Israel insisted he had nothing to do with the crime He was charged with first-degree murder — a crime punishable by hanging The police investigation had turned up people who witnessed the shooting and some who saw the gunman run away They described the shooter's dark overcoat with velvet collar and his gray cap Harold Israel and Homer Cummings (Courtesy of Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library University of Virginia; and Dana Cummings)Some of the witnesses identified Israel as the killer when police brought him to the station And a ballistics engineer told police the bullet that killed the priest came from Israel's revolver The evidence was presented to the chief prosecutor, Fairfield County State's Attorney Homer Cummings. Cummings, 54, was a man of great prominence. He'd been mayor of Stamford, Connecticut, three times, and he'd served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. He was an imposing man — 6-foot-2. He was Ivy League-educated, having completed his undergraduate and law degrees at Yale. On May 27, more than three months after Father Dahme was murdered, there was a pretrial hearing. Prosecutor Cummings stood before the judge and spoke for about 90 minutes without any notes: The case against the accused seemed overwhelming. Upon its face, at least, it seemed like a well-nigh perfect case... Some people had wondered if Israel was a victim of circumstance. Cummings told the judge he had felt there were "sufficient circumstances of an unusual character involved to make it highly important that every fact should be scrutinized with the utmost care and in the most impartial manner." So that's what Cummings had done. He had conducted his own detailed investigation. And that day in court, Cummings — the lawyer charged with prosecuting the case — methodically addressed each scrap of evidence and then tore it to shreds. The transcript of Cummings' statement to the court on May 27 1924 (Courtesy Dana Cummings; photo by Ryan Caron King for WBUR)Cummings had gone to the scene of the crime in the dark of night He had concluded that the people who saw the killer could not have identified the gunman running away in such dim light They all told him that the bullet that killed Father Dahme could not have come from the gun found on Israel The markings on the bullet didn't match up As for the fact that Israel had confessed to the crime doctors who'd examined him claimed the police interrogation left the young suspect too exhausted to say anything reliable — that he only wanted to get some sleep And that's what Cummings concluded: Harold Israel was not the killer It is just as important for a state's attorney to use the great powers of his office to protect the innocent as it is to convict the guilty That's a Latin term for the decision to no longer prosecute The judge agreed and ordered the case against Israel dropped Cummings was celebrated in the press and in legal circles. Harvard Law School professor and future Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter later told Cummings his actions would "live in the annals as a standard by which other prosecutors [would] be judged." The court remarks of Cummings and the judge are transcribed in a 28-page booklet and have been published in law journals. The courthouse in Bridgeport (as seen in July 2016) where Cummings presented his findings as to why the case against Israel was not valid Israel wasn't in court the day his life was spared The former murder suspect and Army vet headed home to Pennsylvania to find a job. Meanwhile, Cummings' star kept rising. In 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt named Cummings U.S. attorney general. Cummings built up the FBI and fought organized crime. He is credited with the creation of Alcatraz, the federal penitentiary in San Francisco Bay. When he retired from the government, Cummings went back to practice law at the two firms he had founded, in Stamford and Washington, D.C. (Courtesy of Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library University of Virginia)A couple of years went by Then the former prosecutor received a letter from someone he likely thought he'd never encounter again — the man he'd saved from the gallows Dear Friend: Just a few line to let you know that I am well and that this will leave you the same I guess you think that I have the nerve to write to you for what you have did for me I am out of work about 3 years and it looks like I can't get any work down here because everywhere I go they say No so I do not know what to do but said he wasn't sure how he could help: I do not know at present what I can do with reference to the matter you mention but I shall certainly be glad to do anything I can then Cummings got another surprise: Hollywood came calling 20th Century Fox was beginning work on a movie based on the Cummings-Israel court case It would come to be called "Boomerang." The filmmakers wanted to know where Israel had ended up So Cummings asked his former federal colleague Load YouTube videoHoover reported back: Israel hard worker and trustee at his church in the village of Gilberton But that wasn't all. Cummings negotiated with the movie producers to pay Israel $18,000 for the rights to his story. That would be about $220,000 today — a nice take for a coal worker raising a family in a small town. Gilberton was a company town. A coal company owned most of the land in the village. Israel worked in the coal yard seven days a week for a sum of $60. He lived in a simple duplex on an unpaved road. The Israel grandkids knew the letters existed; their grandmother had a big drawer full of them. But they'd never read them. The family sat around Freil's kitchen table to look at the transcripts. The first letter was written by their grandmother, Olive Israel — Harold's wife. She had written to Cummings to thank him for securing the money for Harold from the film "Boomerang." The letter reads, in part: We can't begin to thank you enough for what you have done for us... I keep asking my husband "Are you sure it is true." He just laughs at me and says "Sure it is."... To him Mr. Cummings you are next to God. He worships you. He said he would trust you more than anybody in this world. As Lisa Berrier read the letter out loud, her voice cracked and tears welled in her eyes. "Typical of my Gram. That's why I started crying," Berrier said. She and the rest of the Israel family have always known about their grandfather's brush with the law. But they heard about it from his wife — their grandmother Olive — not from him. "It was always Gram. [Harold] never talked about that," Freil said. "I think that was one part of his life that he didn't want to dwell on or think of. He just wanted to get on with his life and enjoy his family and everything." I think every house should have a bathroom. We have to wait for the bathroom fixtures, tub, etc. as they are very hard to get. But I hope we can soon get them as it would be much more convenient with a bathroom... So Mr. Cummings I don't think it is extravagant to try to buy these things that we wanted all our life and could never get until you made it possible, do you? We got a frame for your picture and have it sitting on our fireplace. The fireplace isn't a real one, tho. Just an imitation. I note also the description of the expenditures you are making, and it seems to me that they are entirely justified. I hope that you and your family will derive great comfort and happiness from these expenditures. The correspondence continued. These are excerpts of some of the letters, including one of the few Cummings directed to Harold specifically: A 1948 letter from Cummings to Olive Israel (Courtesy of Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, University of Virginia)Olive to Cummings:  We have built an extra room on our home... We use our home a good deal. The boys love to read funny books and play records so this room will be used real hard. Someday I hope you can come and visit us when we get all fixed up. I guess your house is beautiful... Enclosed you will find a few clippings relative to the "Boomerang." From all I can learn, the critics have given very favorable reviews. I myself saw the picture and it certainly makes quite an exciting story... By the way, if any newspaper people or others make any attempt to interview you or members of your family I would suggest it would be best not to make any statements of any kind... I suggest that you refer them to me. I am always interested in the account of your family activities and since Mrs. Cummings and I visited you at your home we have a very clear picture of what is going on... Indeed I am very proud of Harold for the fine record he has made as husband, father, and friend. Harold and Olive Israel (Courtesy the Israel family; photo by Ryan Caron King for WBUR)Cummings had a small family He became a widower twice and divorced twice But the dynamics of divorce kept the Cummings family members distant Cummings' relationship with the Israels grew warmer He sent gifts to the Israel home in Pennsylvania and baby clothes his wife knit for the Israel grandchildren even brought his wife to visit the Israels at their home in coal country she dyed the hair of the pet terrier so it wouldn't look gray and I hope that happiness and content follow you all the days of your life Cummings wrote that to Olive in October 1949 The Israel family is grateful to Cummings to this day — first for his courage in the courtroom and then for his kindness Olive Israel used to remind her grandchildren that they wouldn't be here if the prosecutor hadn't done what he did: eviscerate the prosecution's own case and exonerate their grandfather "Cummings had a good heart for how he treated my grandfather and tried to protect him," said Harold's granddaughter Load YouTube videoCummings wrote his last letter to the Israels in 1956 There's a list of dozens of people who sent flowers to the Cummings funeral Pennsylvania — a final thank-you from the onetime murder defendant to the former prosecutor who saved his life Harold died eight years later of black lung disease — the scourge of the coal worker The man who murdered Father Dahme in Bridgeport in 1924 was never caught Connecticut authorities today say that's a tragedy but not as great a tragedy as convicting the wrong man -- Read The Marshall Project story, "Homer and Harold: An Extraordinary Story of Justice Done, and What Came After," here, and via Smithsonian magazine. -- For more on Homer and Harold, listen to these stories (photos by Ryan Caron King for WBUR):  Lisa Mullins Host, All Things ConsideredLisa Mullins is the voice of WBUR’s All Things Considered. She anchors the program, conducts interviews and reports from the field. Lynn Jolicoeur Producer/ReporterLynn Jolicoeur is a senior producer and reporter .st1{fill-rule:evenodd;clip-rule:evenodd;fill:#2a2a2a}By Craig Turpin | NJ Advance Media for NJ.comHunterdon County holocaust author The memoir of Holocaust survivor Maud Dahme was recently published with support from Stockton University's Sara & Sam Schoffer Holocaust Resource Center tells Dahme's story of being hidden by Christian families as a child in The Netherlands during World War II The memoir was co-written and edited by Maryann McLoughlin of Stockton's HRC who records the stories of Holocaust survivors so that they can be passed down to future generations 6-year-old Dahme and her 4-year-old sister were taken to the Spronk family in Oldebroek where they were hidden with the Westerink family for the remainder of the war The book chronicles Dahme's wartime experiences as well as post-war events such as her reunion with her parents immigration to the United States at age 14 marriage and serving as a Holocaust education advocate Dahme was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame as one of the state's Unsung Heroes in 2014 She served as president of the New Jersey State Board of Education and participates in Stockton University's faculty-led Study Tours which guide students to Holocaust-related sites in Europe She spends much of her time speaking to students and adults about her experiences during World War II She annually leads New Jersey teachers on a tour of Holocaust sites Dahme's book is available from ComteQ Publishing a company specializing in Holocaust memoirs and Holocaust education The Sara & Sam Schoffer Holocaust Resource Center's mission is to promote greater awareness sensitivity and understanding for Holocaust education The center memorializes the victims of the Holocaust by paying tribute to survivors and serves as a repository for Holocaust materials