The European Jewish Congress organised an educational field trip for high school students from Montgomery International School to sites associated with Jewish life and culture in Belgium, along with locations commemorating the Holocaust and the WWII.
Students had the opportunity to explore Judaism’s heritage in the country, comprehend its history and culture, and understand the impact of the Nazi occupation on Belgium and its Jewish community.
The educational journey began at Fort Breendonk, a Nazi political prison and concentration camp used to detain resistance fighters, political dissidents, Jews, and those deemed enemies of the Third Reich during the war. Students discovered how prisoners were forced to live under harsh conditions and examined Breendonk’s critical role in the broader deportation efforts across Europe.
Following their visit to Breendonk, students visited the Jewish Museum of Belgium where they had the opportunity to gain insight into Jewish identity, discover the life cycle in Judaism, and learn about Jewish culture and traditions. During the guided tour, they saw objects and pictures representing different important moments in Jewish life.
The day concluded with a visit to the Great Synagogue of Europe, located in Brussels. During their time at the synagogue, students engaged in an intimate conversation with Baroness Regina Sluszny- Suchowolski and Baron Julien Klener, two Holocaust survivors and hidden children, who managed to evade Nazi persecution during the war. Their personal testimonies provided profound insights into the challenges they faced as children and their remarkable resilience in building their life in Belgium after the war.
Two members of the Union of Jewish Students of Belgium (UEJB) participated in the field trip and had the opportunity to talk with the high school students about their experiences on campus.
