FROM NEW YORK AND HOUSTON
An article from "Jewish World, April 21-27, 2006"
Getting to Know You -Great Neck's NSHA hosts
Japan-…Sharing songs and dances, the Jewish andJapanese students overcame the language barrier andbonded during the Small Hands Delegation's three-day
stay in Great Neck…"The visit made a very deep
emotional impact on everyone involved," said Rabbi
Marvin Tokayer. "They're still talking about it at NSHA.
It went above anyone's expectations."

A letter from the Holocaust Museum Houston
The host families and those who saw the students
perform are still talking about it. It was discussed at ourBoard meeting. All of you have made such an impact
on all of us and our friendship will continue…
Our board would like you and your students to visit
again so they can perform for a larger group. We hope
this is possible in the future.

We would like to express our deep appreciation for the study trip to;
Rabbi Marvin & Mrs. Mazal Tokayer
Rabbi Yeshayahu Greenfeld, Rabbi Sholom Jensen,
other teachers & the Parent Teachers Association at
North Shore Hebrew AcademyMrs. Dworkin & other teachers at Joseph Kushner
Hebrew Academy

Mr. Amir Ofek and staffs at Consulate General ofIsrael in NY
Rabbi Kermaier & Prof. Yaffa Eliach at
Fifth Avenue Synagogue
Ms. Susan L. Myers, Ms. Linda Toyota and Mr. Paul& Mrs. Edith Hamer at Holocaust Museum Houston

Activities of the Holocaust Education CenterVisitors to the HEC
The HEC has welcomed various visitors from all overJapan this year also, who
visit us to know and study
about the Holocaust. Upto 78,000 visited since theHEC opened. Many
schools visited for theirschool trips, and manyteachers and adults havealso visited us.
Children visiting the HEC
In February, 2006, 80 SotoZen
Buddhistpriestrepresentatives from all overJapan visited the HEC. They
were very impressed with ourcenter's activity, and weredeeply moved by what theylearnt about the Holocaust. Soto Zen Buddhist visitng theVisiting our center, they
discussed how they can spread the activity of our center.
After their visit, some representatives brought their own
community's priest members, from Mie-prefecture andYamaguchi-prefecture. We are pleased that our activity isunderstood and supported by many people of manybackgrounds.
Work Experience Program
During the summer of 2006, two Junior High students ofthe area came to the HEC as part of their "Work Experience
Program". They helped us by handing brochures to thevisitors, cleaning up the building, etc. We are happy to takepart in such roles in the community.
Activity of "Merkaz"
May 20th, 2006, "Merkaz" ("Center" in Hebrew), auniversity student volunteer group of the HEC, began its

activity. Two students, Daisuke Fujimoto (19) and Takeshi
Irie (18), who graduated from "Small Hands" gathered
together to express their wishes of "We want to support theactivity of Small Hands and the HEC".
They are now gathering every Saturday afternoon, andsupporting HEC's activity in many ways. They have sentout letters to organizations in the world such as American
Jewish Students' organization "Hillel", to ask support incollecting artifacts forthenewHEC'sexhibition. They were
happy to receive answers
with warm words ofencouragement.
On Saturdays from
August to October, Mr.
JustinZammit,
anJustin and Merkaz working on theAustralian
student
currently teaching Englishin
Osaka, Japan, came to the HEC for his internship. He
helped us by sorting out the English books in the library,and checking the English explanations in the exhibition.
Daisuke and Takeshi had the chance to work together with
Justin, using English and Japanese to communicate witheach other. They worked together to in translating Japaneseexplanation about Chiune (Sempo) Sugihara into English.
This was a very helpful work for the HEC also, and throughthis translation, theirEnglishskillshaveimproved very much.
"We want to think ofwhat we can do in ourstudents days, and act
according to this thought."
said Daisuke and Takeshi.
Takeshi, Justin, and Daisuke5