Last weekend, September 15-17, Forum for Dialogue organized the third Local Leaders of Dialogue Conference. These annual meetings – added to the Leaders of Dialogue program in 2015 – are aimed at creating a convenient space in which Leaders could interact and integrate, share experiences and strengthen mutual bonds in a group supportive of each other. It is an opportunity to present their work to others, and exchange ideas, solutions and experiences on the ground.

This year the event was held in Podkarpackie province and hosted by Leaders active in that region: Adam, Joanna and Michał Lorenc and Magdalena Zykiert in Rymanów, Jacek Koszczan in Dukla and Jerzy Dębiec in Nowy Żmigród. The three locations and the sheer number of hosts provided a unique insight into different challenges and approaches to commemoration of Jewish past, and reconnecting ties between descendants of Polish Jews abroad and contemporary Poland.

In Rymanów, the main focus of the team of activists affiliated with “Spotkanie Rymanów” Association is to facilitate the dialogue between the descendants of Rymanów’s Jews and contemporary residents of the town. They hold gatherings which give participants an opportunity to learn about each other and share stories. Members of “Spotkanie Rymanów” team not only managed to create a wide network of contacts, but also secured support for their activities from local authorities and the parish priest. During the Rymanów section of the Conference program, the participants had a chance to familiarize themselves with preserved material heritage of the Rymanów’s Jewish community: cemetery with ohalim of famous Rymanów’s tzadikim, synagogue and remaining unique urban layout of the typical Galician shtetl. They also saw the effects of the association’s international cooperation. One such example is the Malka’s House, which became a museum of Rymanów’s Jewish community. It was renovated thanks to the generous support of Malka Shacham Doron, granddaughter of the former owner of the house. Leaving Rymanów, one of the participants remarked jokingly that it seems that the Rymanów Leaders know all the descendants of Rymanów Jews.

photo J.Szkarłat

In Dukla, the local Leader of Dialogue, Jacek Koszczan shared with the group the details of the prolonged formal process involved in obtaining permits and funding to erect a monument commemorating the town’s Jewish population. This was incredibly useful for those among the Leaders, who themselves are planning their own remembrance projects. In Dukla, the group visited the ruined synagogue, and heard about the plans for its restoration, which date back as far as the 1950s and 1960s.

photo J.Szkarłat

Finally, in Nowy Żmigród, the local Leader of Dialogue, Jerzy Dębiec talked about the challenges faced by a Leader of Dialogue working alone, as his only associate recently decided to move to another town. Everyone was deeply impressed by the dedication and amount of hard work that Jerzy Dębiec puts into taking care of the Nowy Żmigród’s Jewish cemetery. One of the participants even commented in appreciation that the grass on the cemetery resembles that of a golf course. In turn, Jerzy Dębiec could hear from Leaders more experienced in international projects, as he is currently planning to establish connections with descendants of Nowy Żmigród’s Jews. The group then went to Hałbowska mountain pass, where they paid their respects at the site of a mass grave making a spot where over 1200 local Jews lost their lives during the war.

photo: J.Szkarłat

Project co-financed by the Ledor Wador Foundation.

In appreciation to the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) for supporting this educator training program. Through recovering the assets of the victims of the Holocaust, the Claims Conference enables organizations around the world to provide education about the Shoah and to preserve the memory of those who perished.