Archive: Around Town

Every year High School English Teacher June Martin invites Fred Voss to tell Lansing sophomores about his experience surviving the Holocaust.  Voss was about the same age as the Lansing students when his world was torn from him by the Nazis.  His home was destroyed, much of his family was killed, and he lost his country.  But he was one of the lucky ones -- he survived.  Last week Voss returned to Lansing to share his experiences again, in honor of the Shoa (the Hebrew word for Holocaust).

"You have two choices in life," Voss says.  "Either get yourself sick about it and you end up in a mental institution, or you say 'Let me go out and talk to other people and prevent this from happening again.'  And that's what I'm doing."


The power of Voss's presentation is that it is his personal account and that he was about the age of his listeners when it happened.  It is chilling to imagine your own teacher forcing you to stand in front of the class to show Aryan students what a Jew looks like, or being beaten, having your home and place of worship destroyed, your cousins killed, relatives disappearing forever.

"It was a very moving speech," says Sophomore Armand Zerilli.  "There were a lot of things I had no idea about.  I just had no idea what could possibly have gone through someone's mind during that period.  Hearing it first hand was really unique, because I have only ever heard documentaries and things other people had written about the period.  To hear it from someone who was there, in their voice, what they saw -- it was a real experience.  It's a really amazing thing to hear about that time in history and what a profound impact it still has today.  The one thing we can do, as Mr. Voss said, is to fight against it."


"The speech was moving, to put it simply," Noah Kantor said.  "It told me what my Dad was always taking about -- fighting racism, fighting hate.  I understand what people who fight those things stand for.  And Fred Voss was there."

Seven years ago Martin was the first in the area to host Voss.  Voss and his wife, Ilsa,  had moved to Ithaca from Lewisburg, PA to be closer to their daughter.  When they got here he put the word out that he wanted to speak about his experiences.  Martin and colleague Wendy Cleveland went to meet him, and he impressed Martin so much that she asked him to speak at Lansing.

"A large part of it is because of the bond that these kids sense that he has with them," said Martin.  "They sense his genuineness and sincerity, and they like him.  I had several juniors ask me yesterday if they could hear Fred again today.  And then they repeat to me verbatim what he said last year.  That's how much of an impact he has."


After so many presentations Voss's slides are fading.  History teacher Dan Ferguson took it upon himself to scan the slides and prepare a Powerpoint presentation that Voss can use in future talks.

Lansing Sophomores learn about the Holocaust in History and English classes.  Martin says that Voss's experiences connect with experiences from her students' families.  "It clicks for us when I ask them for their reactions," she says.  "I'm not sure that Fred gets an opportunity to hear their responses, but we do.  And it does click for them on a very personal level."

In some ways the students' comments in class the next day are as moving as Voss's own story.  One observed that the number of Jewish boys in her class was the same as the number of survivors from Voss's class.  Others were chilled by the fact that Voss really lived through these atrocities.  One questioned his own ability to deal rationally with Holocaust deniers if he had lived through it.

"After the presentation I wish I could find the guy who saved Fred Voss, and give him a hug," said Kris Duran.  "I think that's kind of rare."

"How can anyone survive that?" asked Sam Martin.  "I do not know.  Especially a teenager with all the insecurities and personal worries."

"I thought it was pretty crazy," David Ryan said.  "It just seems really wierd that you read about it in text books, and then you actually meet someone who went through it."

"I was shocked at how much he connected with us," said Kathryn Hornibrook.  "I didn't think someone as old as he is would be able to get up there and remember all that and tell us what happened on a first hand basis.  I was very honored to be one of the last generation to ever hear him speak.  He said they are getting older and dying off.  Now I feel responsible to tell everyone else about it."

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