Get behind the wheel!
Meaningful Ways to Mark Take a Road Trip Day on June 18
Take a Road Trip Day took a back seat to Covid-19 last year. Now that masking and social-distancing mandates have been lifted or relaxed in many places, this is the perfect time to fill up the gas tank and hit the highway.***
Marked annually on the third Friday of June so motorists can take a long weekend if they wish, the quirky “holiday” falls on June 18 this year. Motorists are encouraged to explore areas they have never visited before—either as a day trip or as an overnight excursion. Drives can be taken solo or with a partner, children, and/or friends. Before hitting the road, travelers should decide whether the trip will be purely recreational or contain a cultural, historical, or educational component.
Kol Israel Foundation suggests taking the historical/educational route by visiting sites within driving distance of Northeast Ohio that teach or commemorate the Holocaust. Taking younger members of the family along for the ride may provide a powerful introduction to the importance of remembering victims and sharing their experiences. Of course, be sure to balance the maturity of the child against the intensity of each museum or memorial when selecting a destination.
Here are five sites to consider:
CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center
(Children of Auschwitz Nazi Deadly Lab Experiments Survivors)
1532 South Third Street
Terre Haute, IN 47802
812.234.7881
www.candlesholocaustmuseum.org
Cincinnati Union Terminal
(Nancy and David Wolf Holocaust and Humanity Center)
1301 Western Avenue
Cincinnati, OH 45203
513.487.3055
Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh
826 Hazelwood Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15217
412.421.1500
The Holocaust Memorial Center
28123 Orchard Lake Road
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
248.553.2400
Ohio Holocaust and Liberators Memorial at the Ohio Statehouse
1 Capitol Square
Columbus, OH 43215
STAYING CLOSE TO HOME
Families with younger children, who may be concerned about travelling long distances or overwhelming youngsters with explicit representations of the Shoah, may opt for a short drive to a meaningful site closer to home. KIF’s Holocaust Monument at Zion Memorial Park (5461 Northfield Road, Bedford Heights, OH 44146; 216.662.4260) pays tribute to lives lost during the Holocaust and memorializes Survivors who settled in Northeast Ohio and have since passed away. The site, which contains no graphic depictions of the Holocaust, is accessible whenever the cemetery is open.
Depending on the child’s stage of development, parents and grandparents may wish to explain:
Why Jews were singled out for persecution, what they endured, and why we must remember victims.
Buried beneath the Monument are ashes and bones from Jewish martyrs who were killed at three concentration camps.
For Survivors who do not know where their relatives are buried, these artifacts and the Monument itself provide a meaningful site to recite Kaddish (traditional memorial prayer).
TRIP TIPS
Have you been to any of the above-mentioned sites, or do you have suggestions for other spots of interest? KIF invites you to share your recommendations—and maybe even post a photo or two!—on our Facebook page (Kol Israel Foundation).
***KIF advises calling ahead as some institutions may still enforce certain Covid-19 restrictions, such as masking, social distancing, and/or limited hours of operation.
