Special to the Reporter
The Holocaust Center for Humanity honored three long-time Mercer Island residents at its 20th annual 700-person luncheon on Sept. 24 at the Sheraton Grand Seattle.
The center paid a special tribute to Henry Friedman, a Holocaust survivor from Poland who helped found the center in the late 1980s. Through his participation with its speakers bureau, he has provided thousands of students with a first-person account of the horrors of the Holocaust, the dangers of being a bystander to hate and the importance of being “upstanders.”
State representative Tana Senn, who represents the 41st Legislative District and is the granddaughter and great-granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, received the 2024 Voices for Humanity Award for consistently lending her bold voice to speak out against antisemitism and for Holocaust education.
“We are overjoyed to honor Representative Senn who shares our belief in the power of education to fight antisemitism and hate. She is a champion of Holocaust education and an unwavering voice and face of the Jewish community in the state legislature,” said Lynne Smith, interim CEO of the center. Senn serves as the chair of the Washington State Jewish Legislative Caucus and as the co-president of the National Association of Jewish Legislators.
“My grandparents’ and great grandmother’s experiences as Holocaust refugees and survivors have deeply influenced me. They taught me the importance of voting, of protecting the rights of immigrants and refugees, of supporting those in need, and of speaking out against hate, especially antisemitism,” explained Senn. “As an elected official, I have an incredible opportunity to speak out forcefully. And I do!”
Inspired by Agi Day, who was a hidden child during the Holocaust, the luncheon program featured beautiful artwork of a young woman holding a dove. This winning piece by seventh-grader Mittens Malaika was one of hundreds of entries in the center’s Student Art Contest, inspired by 48 local Holocaust survivors like Day.
The luncheon, chaired by Sarah and Adam Rosen, raised nearly $1.2 million to support and expand Holocaust education efforts currently in 39 school districts across Washington state.
