Poster One
I aimed to make genealogy month relevant by giving the poster a youthful vibe and showing that researching your roots can lead to exciting discoveries. We are all connected - the idea of Jewish people being connected to each other, like limbs of one body, is something we can understand now a days on a whole new level thanks to social media (facebook, geni.com). Researching the lives of our ancestors enhances our unity and shows that we may have a lot more in common than we think.
Poster Two
Took a different approach for this one. It's based on my grandfather's bar mitzvah speech that was said around 1930 which my aunt recently discovered. Here's the part that really touched me:
From the day that the people of Israel have been carrying the Torah, the Torah was dearer to them then all wealth, and more precious then life. The Torah was their comfort and hope. They trusted in it and it did not disappoint them. Many famous and powerful nations have perished, but we who have suffered much more are still existing. It is the Torah which has given us life. The torah is the foundation on which our nation is standing and so long as this foundation will remain, no harm will come to our people.
The poster has scenes of dark times (concentration camp, SS St. Louis ship that was turned away from the U.S. shores) and more positive moments (Operation Magic Carpet saving Yemenite Jewry-located on top left). Underlying it all is the rich heritage of the Torah that keeps us going and shines the light on all that we're going through. The handwritten image on the top right is in my grandfathers handwriting. Finally, the man on the top right, is Sender Jarmulowsky who escaped from the horrors of Europe. One Yiddish newspaper described him, “Jarmulowsky was living proof that in America one can be a rich businessman but also be a true, pious Jew.” That I feel is the essence of who we are, loving G-d even after all these hardships.
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