The Crocus Project

For several years, we have been participating in the international project "Crocus" with young people from high schools in Mszana. The project is aimed at commemorating 1.5 million children-victims of the Holocaust by planting crocus bulbs for them. It is a Holocaust Education Trust Ireland project involving schools from all over Europe. The crocuses that bloom in spring remind us of the innocent victims. In Mszana Dolna, 171 children under 10 and 169 teenagers died in the Holocaust. In previous years, we planted crocuses for them at crime scenes, at mass graves. This year, we planted 100 bulbs received by the Galicja Museum in front of the school building at Matejki Street. This is an important place, because it was the seat of the mayor of Mszana from the German assignment, Gelb, the executioner of the Jews of Mszana. Here, 12-year-old Chaim Schmidt was murdered, 2 other young Jews were killed by the nearby watchtower, and the nearby Market Square was the place of residence of many Jewish families. The synagogue with a cheder and a primary school attended by many of these minor victims were also nearby. We told the stories of those Child Victims of whom we have any knowledge. Each student drew the name of one of the Victims and, planting a bulb for they, said their name aloud.

Translated by Rachela Antosz-Rekucka