Reflections by some of the students:

I would like to thank everyone for giving Hughesville High School the amazing opportunity to go to an emotion-packed=museum.  I believe that this opportunity is an amazing idea to make available to other schools because it brings so many things to reality and gives an emotional impact that should make everyone aware of the struggles of those during the holocaust.  There were so many things that just send chills down your spine when you walk through the museum.  Seeing all the shoes, the pictures of all those who died, the gas chamber, the flag, every detail has such a heavy feeling to it, which even though it was sad, all this should be remembered so that we never repeat the past.  Something I liked about the museum was the climate in the rooms; I don’t know if it was intentional, but walking into a room and getting a cold, musty feeling just made it feel all the more realistic and emotional.  One of the things that just made my blood run cold was the concentration camp mock-up, which showed timeline actions of what happened leading up to being placed in the gas chambers.  I believe that organizations that do educational events like this will make an impact on the world one step at a time.  I would like to give one final thank you for giving our school such an amazing opportunity that will live in our minds forever.                                   - Hughesville High School Class of 2026.

Before visiting the Holocaust Museum, I was already familiar with its history through previous academic studies and my family’s connections to the Holocaust.  However, I always had one lingering question: “Why did no one stop it?”  While there are obvious historical answers to this question, something I encountered at the museum gave me a deeper understanding.                                                                                                                                            As I made my way back down to the bottom floor near the end of the exhibit, I saw a quote on the wall:  “First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out – because I was not a socialist.  Then they came for the trade unionist, and I did not speak out – because I was not a trade unionist.  Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out – because I was not a Jew.  Then they came for me – and there was no one left to speak for me” (Martin Niemller a prominent German protestant pastor).                                                                                          I am very thankful to the Lycoming County Brotherhood Alliance for providing others and me with the profound opportunity to experience this trip.  I found the museum incredibly impactful in the way it presents the truth about the Holocaust.  I believe everyone in the world should visit the Holocaust Museum so we can learn from the mistakes and never let something like this happen ever again.   -Local History/Sociology Class 3/4/2026

The voices of the survivors at the end of the exhibit was one of my favorite parts of the exhibit.  To hear their personal stories firsthand, not just to read the facts, but hear what they went through from them was a good experience.  My friends and I spent a good amount of time sitting on the benches watching them share story after story, listening to how similar, yet different, all of their experiences were.    -Student Essay Exerpt

The Holocaust Trip: Going through the museum, there were many parts of it that lit a certain kind of feeling that I've never felt before. I have learned about the Holocaust an overview however, reading through all of the paragraphs, messages, and descriptions, I got to learn in depth about certain topics I was more curious about. I knew the Holocaust was brutal, but hearing some of the survivors' stories and reading about what they went through gave me a perspective I have not seen before.                                                                                                    One of the most impactful exhibits was the display of what the gas chamber at Auschwitz really looked like and how big it truly was. Seeing the line of people going to the "showers" showed me just how many lives they killed and simply how easy it was for the Nazis to do. Seeing the children in there was also something I was not prepared to see. They were clinging to their parents, walking together, or even being sent in alone. I always knew kids were sent into those, however seeing it gave it  such a deeper meaning and made it more real.                                                                                                                                                                             Another impactful exhibit was David's (Daniel's) Story. Being able to walk through basically his life and his experiences and almost relive the tragic events he had to go through in his eyes gave me a really in-depth visual experience. I appreciated how big it was and how they took every detail into consideration. Especially when it got to near the end of his story, and his journal went from nice and neat to dirty and scraggly. Learning what the living quarters they were kept in were like and being able to be in there and experience the cramedness and uncleanliness that David (Daniel) and his family had to be in was quite eye-opening. Overall, I think it was a great experience, and I would very much recommend continuing to do this trip. I think it was a great learning experience and very eye-opening. I learned a lot more being in there than I did just learning about it in a classroom. 

Essay Excerpt:  In the end, Daniel's Story taught me more than just historical facts, it taught me empathy. It reminded me how important it is to stand against hatred and discrimination, because the consequences can be devastating. The exhibit will stay with me for a long time because it showed me the human side of history, and it made me feel the weight of what people like Daniel had to endure.    Thank you!   -High School Student