Greenspon Center: Life-changing Inaugural Community Trip to Poland
By Mary Eshet
The Stan Greenspon Holocaust Education Center honors the memory of the Holocaust while empowering individuals to confront antisemitism and hatred in all its forms— a mission that unfolds in countless ways.
In October, Judy La Pietra, director of the Greenspon Center, and Rabbi Judy Schindler, Sklut Professor of Jewish Studies at Queens University, led the center’ s first Charlotte community trip to Poland. The journey was titled“ Bearing Witness to the Past and Present.”
Over 10 days, the group of 12 traveled through Warsaw, Lublin, and Krakow, tracing not only the history of the Holocaust but also the richness of Jewish life in Poland before World War II and the vibrant culture that continues today. The days were packed with museum visits, walking tours, memorials, and informative speakers. In addition to Judy and Judy, the tour was led by Taube Jewish Heritage Tours, which is staffed by knowledgeable individuals, who shared history and culture in an engaging way.
“ I have toured Poland and the Holocaust sites many times – as a student, as a teacher and as a guide for educators in our Certificate in Holocaust Pedagogy program,” said Judy La Pietra.“ This trip was especially impactful, in part because the group came from the Charlotte Jewish community. It felt very personal.
Bearing witness to the atrocities is incredibly painful, yet the group supported each other every step of the way. The trip was a testament to memory, resilience, and renewal, and l returned more committed than ever to the work of Holocaust education.”
The group visited synagogues – some active, some a memory of what was, cemeteries, and Jewish Community Centers. The trips to Majdanek, Auschwitz-Birkenau, and the Lopuchowo Forest( where on August 25, 1941, almost all the 1,400 Jewish residents of the town of Tykocin were murdered by Nazi German forces) were especially impactful and incredibly sobering.
Rabbi Judy reflected on just how much has been lost in her poem titled“ Visiting What Cannot Be Seen.” About the Warsaw ghetto, she wrote:“ A beautiful hotel rises where the small Warsaw Ghetto once stood. Beneath us— a graveyard. Six hundred thousand dead from World War II, their bones sometimes unearthed as foundations are laid for the new. People vanishing. People vanished.”
When asked to capture the experience in one word, participants called it“ powerful, incredible, intense, meaningful, and unforgettable.”
“ The trip was life changing,” said Melissa Raphael, one of the travelers.“ The speakers were wonderful and very impressive. The content of the journey was great- far more than I expected.
Judy La Pietra is an exceptional leader and having Rabbi Judy with us added to the experience. It was a fantastic group of people, and everyone got along so well.”
Eric Lerner, another traveler, shared,“ The experience left me a changed person. I came away not only with sorrow but also with gratitude— for the survivors who spoke, for the historians who preserved, and for the silent stones that still remember when the world tries to forget. Visiting these sites is painful, yes, but it is also necessary. To go to these places is to stand in the shadow of human cruelty, but
The Charlotte Jewish News- December 2025- Page 19
also in the light of human resilience. To confront such darkness is to affirm the light.” Coming Soon Mark your calendar for Jan. 27, 2026, when the Greenspon Center will commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day and unveil plans for a new Holocaust memorial in Charlotte. The program, open to the public, will be held from 7 to 8:45 p. m. at Queens University. It will bring communities together to honor the victims and survivors of the Holocaust as well as the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., highlighting the shared histories and enduring
ties between Black and Jewish communities.
You can register at https:// bit. ly / january2026event
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