Besides remembering what is long gone, decimated by the Holocaust of World War II, the CENTROPA organization is dedicated to recapturing the vibrant Jewish life of the early 20th century on the European continent. Their operation is based in headquarters in Vienna, Austria; Budapest, Hungary; and Hamburg, Germany. The organization’s full name is Central Europe Center for Research and Documentation.
The motto for CENTROPA is “Preserving Jewish Memory, Bringing History to Life”. It is a daunting task given the great diversity and variety of the Jewish way of life from 1900 to the 1930s, which was often integrated into every layer of European society. In this podcast program episode, listen to Lauren Granite, Centropa United States Education Director, describe the ways they accomplish their goals. It includes the development of educational programs for schools, award-winning films, food recipes from former Jewish kitchens, photos from the Balkan Sephardic communities, and most of all through the archives of interviews and story telling.
It is a noble mission that CENTROPA has and poignant because the more European Jewish history of the 20th Century is brought to life, the value of what has been lost is more profoundly understood.
TO CONTACT:
www.centropa.org
Granite@centropa.org for educational resources and materials
