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Free Holocaust program to take place April 24 at museum

  • Published
  • By Sarah Swan
  • National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
DAYTON, Ohio --  Visitors to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force will have a unique opportunity to listen to first-hand experiences from those who experienced the history of the Holocaust on Friday, April 24.

Renate Frydman, curator of the museum's "Prejudice and Memory: A Holocaust Exhibit," will speak at 10 a.m. in the museum's Carney Auditorium. Frydman's grandfather, Max May, left Frankfurt, Germany, and came to New York in 1936. Two years later, following Kristallnacht, her grandmother, parents and Renate herself escaped from Frankfurt to Holland, then to England and finally to the United States. Meanwhile, Frydman's future husband, Charles, was interned in several small camps but managed to escape and hide in the Polish forests for more than two years until he was liberated by the Russians in January 1945. He came to Dayton in 1950.

This free presentation is open to the public and will last approximately one hour. Seating will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Following Frydman's presentation, visitors may self-tour the "Prejudice and Memory" exhibit. Made up of the photographs, artifacts and memories of people who now live in the Dayton area, it is one of few exhibits in the U.S. compiled to demonstrate one community's connection with this terrible event. The exhibit also connects with the Air Force story by sharing accounts of the "terrorfliegers," the 168 Allied Airmen captured and sent to concentration camps rather than prisoner of war camps. Featured in the exhibit is a video with oral histories of U.S. military personnel who liberated the camps. Docents will be stationed throughout the exhibit to answer questions, and visitors also may pick up a commemorative booklet.

The program is scheduled in conjunction with the Days of Remembrance when people across the United States reflect on the Holocaust, a genocide in which approximately six million Jews and millions more from other diverse groups were killed or imprisoned were killed by the Nazi regime and its collaborators.

The museum also offers a self-guided audio tour, narrated by Frydman, to help onsite and online visitors experience the "Prejudice and Memory" exhibit. Visitors can download the free podcast or listen to individual audio files on the museum's website at www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/podcasts/holocaust.asp.

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, is the world's largest military aviation museum. With free admission and parking, the museum features more than 360 aerospace vehicles and missiles and thousands of artifacts amid more than 17 acres of indoor exhibit space. Each year about one million visitors from around the world come to the museum. For more information, visit www.nationalmuseum.af.mil.


NOTE TO PUBLIC: For more information, please contact the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Education Division at (937) 255-4652.

NOTE TO MEDIA: For more information, please contact Sarah Swan at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force Public Affairs Division at (937) 255-1283.