On March 27-29, a seminar for teachers/educators, “Teaching about Jewish history and the Holocaust in Lithuania through family stories and on-site visits,” took place in Palanga and Plunge.
The international 3-day event began in the “heart” of Palanga – the Palanga Kurhaus. The Deputy Mayor of Palanga, Rimantas Antanas Mikalkėnas, who was present at the seminar’s opening, welcomed the participants from all over Lithuania who will have a unique opportunity to learn about the rich history of the Jewish community of Palanga.
The seminar offered various activities for the participants: an introduction to the history of the last Jew of Plungė, Jakovas Bunka; a lecture by historian Hektoras Vitkus on the history of the Jews of the Klaipėda region and the Holocaust; and a screening and discussion of the Centropa film on Sephardic Jews. One day of the seminar was also devoted to a sightseeing excursion to Plungė – to get acquainted with the history of local Jews and the symbols representing the life of the Jewish community in Plungė before the Second World War and the destruction of the Jewish community in Kaušėnai in July 1941. Another excursion was dedicated to the history of the Jews of Palanga. The old Jewish cemetery was visited, as well as the buildings and places in the center of Palanga that remind us of the former synagogues, the amber processing companies, the soft drink brewery, the power plant, etc., that were operated and owned by Jewish owners. Vilius Gutmanas, the chairman of the Jewish community of Palanga, shared his ideas on how to commemorate the murdered Jews of Palanga.
The seminar was attended by 27 teachers and educational staff from various Lithuanian schools, museums, and other academic institutions. The participants were educators who had already participated in seminars organized by Centropa in Lithuania.
The seminar was organized by Centropa in cooperation with the Secretariat of the International Commission. The seminar was co-organized by the Jewish Community of Palanga and the Jakovas Bunka Charity and Sponsorship Fund.
Photographer Wojciech Wojtkielewicz