Youth Confronting History Keynote: Ellen Dubie
Youth Confronting History engages middle and high school students in Western New York, Northwestern Pennsylvania, and the surrounding region in an in-depth exploration of justice, moral courage, and civic responsibility. Over three years, students will examine the Holocaust and the Nuremberg Trials through the themes of voice, justice, and action. The goal is to connect historical events to the choices young people face today.
This program is generously funded by the Arnold and Jill Bellowe Family Foundation which means students and teachers have no cost to participate.More information about the Youth Confronting History program and registration can be found here.
Teachers please note:
The fall keynote is open to all middle and high school students and participation in the full Youth Confronting History program is not required to attend. However, we strongly encourage teachers to register their students for the full program and participate in the workshops and spring Student Showcase. The keynote is designed to serve as the opening experience for the year, with the winter workshops and spring showcase providing opportunities for students to explore the topic more deeply and put their learning into action. You are welcome to bring your students to the keynote on its own, but we encourage you to take advantage of the full Youth Confronting History experience!
About the Speaker:
Ellen Dubie is a second-generation Holocaust survivor, born in Boston, MA, and moved to Buffalo 9 years ago and was a former HRC Board member. Her father, Stephan H. Lewy (1925-2021), was a Holocaust Survivor, who was an active speaker in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Western NY for several years. Ellen is the Program Administrator of the Internal Medicine-Pediatrics Residency Program at the University at Buffalo.
About Her Father:
Stephan Lewy was born Heinz Stephan Lewy in Berlin in 1925. Stephan grew up in the Auerbach Orphanage where he lived through Kristallnacht hiding in the orphanage’s synagogue. Stephan was then sent on a Kindertransport to France in 1939, living in both occupied and unoccupied zones. In 1942, Stephan was able to get passage to the United States and in 1943 he was drafted into the U.S. Army. After the war Stephan returned to the U.S. where he still lives.