There are approximately only 1,000 first generation survivors of the Shoah still alive in the United Kingdom, and as that number continues to dwindle, young people and descendants are increasingly being encouraged to carry the torch and disseminate their stories.

Generations 2 Generations, the UK’s leading charity focusing on descendants of Holocaust survivors presenting their families’ stories, currently has 35 accredited speakers to deliver presentations and are on track to have more than 40 by the end of this year.

In the 23/24 academic year, G2G speakers were booked to speak to more than 360 groups and to approximately 35,000 people.

Lia Bratt, 25, granddaughter of the well-known survivor and educator Ivor Perl BEM, 92, has recently become a G2G speaker. She presents his story through a presentation, while he is close by to answer questions from the audience afterwards.

She told the JC that a trip to Auschwitz with her “Papa” Ivor and her mother, “ignited the fire” inside her to get involved in Holocaust remembrance.

Her grandfather “got to the point of not wanting to do [educational talks] anymore, but more and more, every year he sees his friends are dying, and he feels some guilt” about not continuing to give presentations.

“So, he felt some relief when he found out I was going to carry this on and make sure the story is not forgotten,” Lia said. “He’s really proud; he gets so emotional every time I do the talks, and I’m becoming more confident every time I do them.”

Meanwhile, the Association of Jewish Refugees is, nearly 80 years after the end of the Second World War, still enrolling new first-generation members, with 25 having joined in 2023 and even more this year.  

AJR, which recently launched the group Next Generations to preserve the heritage and culture of their ancestors, has over 1,000 second generation members, 72 third generation, and four fourth generation members. In 2023, 106 first generation AJR members died.

Ella Kaufman, who shares the story of her great-grandmother, Eva Schapira (Credit: AJR)

One fourth gen member, Ella Kaufman, 16, great-granddaughter of Eva Schapira, 93, told the JC that it was only after October 7 that she became “very passionate” with regards to educating others about where antisemitism can lead.

She wrote to the headmaster of her non-Jewish school in January to arrange for a Holocaust survivor to come in and speak. Some 150 pupils turned up for the optional assembly.

Eva Schapira (Credit: AJR)

Her great-grandmother Eva does not do talks of her own anymore, and so Ella feels it has fallen to people like her to ensure “their stories, what they went through, will never be forgotten”.

To enrol as an AJR member, visit ajr.org.uk, or to get involved with G2G you can email office@generation2generation.org.uk