Newsletter No. 33
Nisan 5768 – April 2008

Dear Friends!

The visit of the President of Hungary

In the course of his official visit to Israel, the President of Hungary, Mr. Sólyom László specifically requested to visit the Museum.

The President and his wife arrived at the Museum on March 6, 2008, with a large delegation, including representatives of the press, the Hungarian Ambassador to Israel and staff members of the embassy. They were welcomed by the founders of the Museum, Hava & Yosef Lustig, and Professor Hanna Yablonka, Chairperson of the Museum's board, joined by a few board members, the Museum staff, and active volunteers from the Tsfat area. Mayor Yishai Maimon also participated in the ceremony and welcomed the distinguished guest.

The President and his entourage were deeply impressed by their tour of the Museum and the explanations and expressed sincere interest in the exhibition.

The visit, which won press and media coverage, represented an additional stage in the evolvement of close links and cooperation between the Museum and official Hungarian institutions.

The following is a translation of the comments inscribed by the Hungarian President in our visitors book:

“I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude in the name of Hungary and as its representative. Your activities are of vast significance as an expression of the shared Hungarian and Jewish destiny and for the conservation of roots for the young generation. It is my earnest wish that you never cease your efforts!”

Lecture series for the second generation

March 12, 2008 – Dr. Naomi Hoffman lectured in Tel Aviv on: “Identity Carved in Stone – the decoration of Jewish headstones in Hungary as an expression of the cultural encounter between Jewish ritual objects and local popular art”. The lecturer also contributed a copy of her doctoral thesis on the subject to the Museum library.

Notable visits

The participants in a teachers’ advanced course by Yad Vashem, visited the Museum on International Holocaust Day and met with Lev Diamant, a Red Army veteran, who served in World War II as a spy and pilot.
A group of journalists from Hungary visited us for the purpose of learning about our activities, through the auspices of Yad Vashem.
Groups of Hungarian youth, organized by the Jewish Agency, continue to visit the Museum and show great interest in studying their heritage.
Mrs. Suzanne Nash, who is devoting efforts to establishing a circle of supporters of the Museum in New York, visited us accompanied by members of her family and donated her newly published book along with precious family memorabilia to the Museum. We also wish to thank her cousin, Lukács Tibor of Budapest for sharing with us these artifacts.

The “Herzl Day” conference ( October 1, 2007)

Hundreds of visitors filled the Museum courtyard at the annual meeting during the Sukkot holiday. The outdoor reception area enabled participants to mingle and socialize. The area was divided into several sections with specific activities or exhibits in each:

The "settlement corner" was filled with photographs brought by friends of the Museum, providing a fascinating view of the settlement of immigrants from Hungary in Israel. The exhibit was accompanied by a map, on which the visitors marked the places where they settled after arriving in Israel, adding their family names. There was soon no space left on the map…
“Eating in Hungarian” – ten chefs from all over Israel, led by the journalist Ofer Vardi, volunteered to prepare typical dishes and served them in an attractive kitchen corner. Typical Hungarian cakes were provided by Yehudit Sharon, owner of a Hungarian restaurant in Tel Aviv.
An exhibit on “Jozsef Patai’s Tours of the Holy Land” was on display. Dr. Anna Szalai edited the material taken from the well-known author’s book on his visits to Eretz Israel and his encounters with pioneers from Hungary. Guy Raz added photographs and designed the exhibit.
Gavriela Bar-Mazal demonstrated embroidery in Hungarian popular style.
Zipora Neeman exhibited a selection of her artistic paper cutout work.
A workshop for the second generation was led by Yehudit Ashbel and was devoted to the importance of heritage preservation.
Many of the participants joined in a sing-along, accompanied by Sigal & Yoram Burstein.
Professor Hanna Yablonka gave a lecture on the contribution of Hungarian-speaking Jewry to the State of Israel.
The Zimrat-Ya choir of cantors, conducted by Dr. Uri Aharon, presented a selection of traditional melodies and Hungarian Jewish music.
The scholarship in memory of Dr. Mordechai and Dr. Thea Révész of blessed memory, was presented to the Museum for the project commemorating Jewish children who perished in the Holocaust, and to Ruthie Glick for a research paper on Hanna Szenes.

Additional exhibits in the Holy Ark room

We have recently constructed an exhibit of Torah scrolls and prayer books at the exhibition room of the Holy Ark of Tokaj. A Torah scroll from the Somorja community, donated several months ago by Berta and Yaakov Wosner, is also on display.

Another new exhibit in this room is a collection of Passover Haggadas donated by Mr. Mordechai Fisch: 110 Haggadas connected to the Hungarian-speaking Jewry.

New items in the Museum

Our gratitude goes out to all the donors who have entrusted their treasures with us. Here are a few examples.

Four sketches from the legacy of Shoshana Sharon of blessed memory, a loyal friend of the Museum from the outset, were donated by Mr. Avraham Sharon.

In the photograph: “The sole survivors” by Abel Pann.
A thick volume of greetings extended to a young couple, Dr. David Barshi and Mina Freund on their wedding day 9.5.1909, was donated by Mrs. Telma Shor-Barshi.
Mr. Yehuda Moskovits has donated hundreds of books, mostly focused on the Holocaust. Among them, an original booklet issued by the Hungarian Minister of Defence in 1940, containing instructions on the racial laws.
A candelabrum presented as a wedding gift in 1810 in Dicsõszentmárton was donated by Mr. Moshe Feuerstein.
Comprehensive research is currently underway in studying important archival records from the Carpato-Russ area. The initiative belongs to Mr. Zeev Eisikovic of Vienna, who is funding the project. The work, conducted by Mr. Eli Netzer, focuses on locating and photocopying documents regarding the confiscation of Jewish property during the Holocaust. The data is being processed into computerized lists.
Mr. Yitzhak Livnat, member of our board, continues to enrich our library with recent research books from Hungary.
Mr. Andre Léber has donated a copper relief, the work of his late father, Léber Gyula of Kolozsvár. The work was prepared for the 40th anniversary of the 1944 deportation.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude for the support of the following:

The Claims Conference
The Leslie & Vera Keller Fund for the Nurturing of Jewish Heritage
The Ministry of Science, Culture and Sport
Mr. Peter Munk of Canada
Mr. Zvi Atir

Our heartfelt thanks to:

The volunteers of the Museum in Israel for their invaluable work.

Our volunteers abroad:

Mrs. Edith Preston of Australia
The Koltai family of Los Angeles
Mrs. Suzanne Nash and Evi Blaikie of New York
The board members of our Association in Hungary

Annual Membership Renewal

Please pay attention to renewal of your membership as a Friend of the Museum.

Your generous donation will help us further maintain the Museum and develop it further.

Our friends in the U.S.A. may contribute a tax-deductible donation for the Museum through the P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds Inc. If you wish to donate this way, please make a check payable to P.E.F. Israel Endowment Funds Inc. and send it to their New York office along with the form.

We greatly appreciate your ongoing support!

Best wishes for the upcoming holidays to all of you – thousands of Friends of the Museum all over the world.

Prof. Hanna Yablonka
Chairperson

Josef Lustig
Managing Director

Newsletter No. 33 Nisan 5768 – April 2008