In an attempt to escape during the Holocaust of World War II in Czechoslovakia, little Nadia Rosa was climbing a ladder in a home as fast as she could when a member of the Gestapo snatched her. Her story is not unique. Many families like Rosa’s tried to flee for their lives during this dark period of human history, and few lived to tell about it. More than six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.

Rosa was one of the fortunate few, and was able to escape with her mother. Now at 73 years of age, Rosa is able to look back and reflect on that time, saying she doesn't know "if it's a gift or a curse, but I have a very good memory (of the Holocaust). They took away the dignity in dying."

Rosa's powerful message had the student audience glued to her every word. As one of numerous emotional speakers in a weeklong Holocaust for Hope Conference in Milton District High School earlier this month, Rosa helped set the tone for students, staff, leaders, scholars and survivors to examine the events and effects of war. As well as the World War II Holocaust, genocides and civil wars in Armenia, Rawanda, Darfur and Sierra Leone, as well as the impact of Internet hate crimes, were discussed.

The conference, organized by staff and students, also featured poignant exhibitions from Yad Vashem – a Holocaust history museum – plus The Anne Frank Museum and the Centre of Tolerance in New York.

Rosa called the conference “wonderful”, and she hopes it helps students practice “decency” toward each other, sensitivity and “not to judge people.” 

A similiar message was offered by Ephraim Kaye, Director of International, Seminars for Educators at Yad Vashem, Jerusalem, Israel. In his poignant keynote address, prior to the conference's break-out sessions, Kaye explained the senselessness of the Holocaust. He also showed a rare silent film depicting horrifiic images of the Holocaust, captivating the large crowd of students and staff.

The weeklong conference, hosted November 8-11, hit its mark with Board students and staff, prompting them to reflect on human rights and everyone's right to diginified living. 

“I think this conference is a great experience," says Grade 12 Milton District High School student Faiza Ali. "It raises a lot of awareness, not just about the Holocaust, but different things going on today."

Ian Jones, Milton District High School principal, has had his students participate in a variety of cultural experiences, including visits to Aushwitz concentration camp and the Tolerance Museum in Los Angeles, where students learned about respect for human life. The conference was very much a culmination of those eye-opening trips. The weeklong format allowed more students and the public the opportunity to attend, he adds.

“We had 15 speakers over five days, with more than 1,800 people attending the conference, with exhibits from New York and Jerusalem,” he says, noting the conference tied into Grade 10 history lessons and a new course, called Living Cultures. “I hope (the conference) raises student awareness and increases interest in (cultural) diversity.”

Leading up to the conference, students at Milton District High School have been collecting pennies and placing them in a penny wall, through an initiative called The Penny Project. The penny wall, which contains thousands of donated pennies showing through plex-glass, was on display at the school during the conference, as it has since the project started many months ago. The goal has been to collect six million pennies as a way to represent those who lost their lives in the Holocaust. The pennies are to be donated to War Child, a non-profit organization that helps to raise awareness and support of war-affected children around the world.

The Penny Project has been designed to help students participate in cultural proficiency activities. In particular, the school says the aim is to help students recognize the changing demographic face of Milton, and to help everyone build strong relationships with each other.