The Charlotte Jewish News- September 2026- Page 13
What They Lived Through Must Never Be Forgotten
By Elizabeth Johnson
As Holocaust survivors become fewer each year and antisemitism continues to rise, Fred Valfer believes preserving Holocaust memory now falls to the next generation.
For Valfer,“ Never Again” is not simply something we say. It is a moral imperative that demands vigilance, historical understanding and the courage to confront dehumanization before it takes root. Driven by that conviction, he accepted the chairmanship of the North Carolina Holocaust Foundation( Holocaust Foundation), determined to ensure the lessons of the Holocaust remain central to classrooms across the state.
The Holocaust Foundation serves as the fundraising partner of the North Carolina Council on the Holocaust( Holocaust Council), a state agency established by the North Carolina General Assembly. Together, the two organizations were leading advocates for the Gizella Abramson Holocaust Education Act, which requires Holocaust education in public middle and high schools across North Carolina. Enacted in 2021, the law reflects the state’ s commitment to ensuring future generations understand the causes, consequences and enduring lessons of the Holocaust.
Today, the Holocaust Foundation helps fund conferences, workshops and professional development opportunities that enable educators with the knowledge, classroom resources and confidence to teach the Holocaust with historical accuracy and sensitivity.
And for Valfer, this very mission is deeply personal.
Like many children of Holocaust survivors, he grew up knowing only fragments of his family’ s story. His parents survived the Theresienstadt concentration camp but rarely spoke about what they had endured. Instead, they focused on raising two sons in Rochester, Minnesota with a strong Jewish identity while instilling in them a deep appreciation for the opportunities America had given their family.
Everything changed after“ People” magazine published a story about Steven Spielberg’ s film“ Schindler’ s List.” In it, readers learned Valfer’ s uncle and his brother were among the Jews saved by Oskar Schindler.“ After carrying their experiences quietly for decades, my parents began telling us what they had lived through,” Valfer recalled.“ The starvation. The degradation. How they were stripped of their humanity and reduced to just a number.”
Soon afterward, his parents began speaking in classrooms, churches, museums and community centers, believing future generations needed to understand what happened during the Holocaust and the consequences of allowing hatred to go unchallenged.
Today, Valfer considers it his responsibility to carry their work forward.“ I hope my parents know I’ m continuing what they began,” he shared.“ They believed what they had lived through could educate and inspire others. If we stop bearing witness to them, we risk forgetting not only what happened, but how it happened.”
As chairman, Valfer believes educators are the key to preserving Holocaust memory for future generations.“ How do we get teachers involved?” he asked.“ How do we motivate them to engage and teach with the passion this subject demands?”
For Valfer, that question lies at the heart of the fight against antisemitism.“ When I speak to students, I talk about the similarities between today and Nazi Germany in the 1930s,” he said.“ I also draw parallels to the era of American slavery. History, sadly, has a way of repeating itself. Until people understand its origins, they will remain susceptible to the same insidious propaganda that made the Holocaust possible.”
He also sees troubling parallels between the rapid spread of distorted narratives across social media today and the ease with which falsehoods shape public opinion.“ Misinformation creates misinformed minds. When individuals accept information without questioning it, prejudice and hatred can and will take root. Education is how we combat antisemitism. It teaches students to think critically, ask important questions, and recognize where intolerance can lead.”
Looking ahead, Valfer envisions the Holocaust Foundation, in conjunction with the Holocaust Council, will continue to expand its reach by equipping every teacher in North Carolina with the training and support needed to teach Holocaust history with depth, accuracy and compassion.
“ If every student leaves Holocaust classes understanding that genocide doesn’ t begin with violence, but with the gradual acceptance of prejudice and dehumanization, and that each of us has a responsibility to challenge those forces early, we’ ve accomplished something powerful.”
For Valfer, preserving Holocaust memory is not solely about honoring those who survived. It is about preparing the next generation. By giving every classroom teacher the tools to educate, encouraging students to think critically and preserving survivor testimony, he believes the North Carolina Holocaust
Foundation will ensure the lessons of the Holocaust endure long after the last eyewitnesses are gone.
If you would like more information, or to donate to the North Carolina Holocaust Foundation, please reach out to Fred Valfer at NCHolocaustFoundation @ gmail. com.
Fred and Katie Valfer
The Jewish Story Behind Phish’ s“ Avinu Malkeinu”
By Elizabeth Johnson This summer, amid the sprawling jams and freewheeling improvisation for which Phish has built a devoted following, something decidedly unexpected filled Madison Square Garden:“ Avinu Malkeinu.”
The High Holiday prayer has an unlikely but enduring place in Phish’ s repertoire. Shortly after forming, Phish first performed the song on Sept. 21, 1987, in Burlington, Vermont, and has returned to it periodically in the decades since. For bassist Mike Gordon, however, that connection runs much deeper.
Gordon’ s father, Robert“ Bob” Gordon, who died in June, was a prominent advocate for Jews facing persecution in the Soviet Union. His concern for their plight was rooted in his childhood. His family adopted a sixyear-old Jewish refugee from Germany whose mother later perished at Auschwitz, and the boy grew up as Gordon’ s brother.
In 1974, Gordon founded Action for Soviet Jewry in response to restrictions that denied Jews the right to emigrate. He made repeated trips to the Soviet Union, bringing prohibited religious materials, including Torahs, as well as electronics to Jews living under Soviet restrictions.
According to his son, Gordon went on to become an international leader in the movement, collaborating with members of Congress and activists around the world on their behalf.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, he turned his attention to helping Jews build new lives, including through a long-standing partnership between the Jewish communities of Boston and Dnipropetrovsk, now Dnipro, Ukraine.
Bob Gordon had been part of Phish’ s story from its earliest days. In a tribute to his father, Mike Gordon recalled that Bob attended the first concert under the Phish name, when only a handful of people were in the room, and went on to attend hundreds of shows, including the final Sphere performance before his death. He was also a fixture at his son’ s other milestones, from movie premieres to birthday celebrations. As Gordon put it, his father“ always showed up.”
Against that history, hearing the familiar strains of an ancient Jewish melody inside one of the world’ s most famous arenas carries a resonance beyond an unexpected entry on a set list.