The project, created by DGC heads Arden Lipton ’21, Lauren Friedman ’21, Misha Gelman ’22, and Program Director Erica Shein, paired high school students with Himan Brown members for a series of conversations. The students then crafted succinct narratives to capture the epic histories of their counterparts.

Nick Freund ’24 paired with Gloria to discuss her classic NYC upbringing that ended up leading her to Honolulu. Julia Hammerman ’24 recounted Vera’s amazing story of how her parents were refused entry to the United States during WWII on the historic MS St Louis. Charlotte Effron ’23 shared Lillian’s journey from surviving World War II to becoming an educator and raising four children. Vivi Tonin ’22 created a video presentation about Jerry’s escape from Hitler to sanctuary in Shanghai. Samiha Tasnim ’21 presented a PowerPoint summary of Sarah’s path to becoming an engineer and technology expert right at the advent of computer systems.

These stories were all wonderfully inspiring in their own unique ways and told tales of fortitude, change, and perseverance through changing times. “The will to carry on…it’s beautiful to see,” said attendee Neal. The entire process created entirely new pathways of intergenerational community and togetherness throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, and it laid the groundwork for this program to continue in subsequent school years.

A recording of this presentation can be viewed on the accompanying video.

Story submitted by HS Community Service and Internships Coordinator, Doug Berns