For the first time, a diverse delegation from Rambam Health Care Campus is participating in the "March of the Living," an annual international educational program that examines the roots of prejudice, intolerance and hatred that led to the Holocaust.
Dr. Daniella Magen, director of Rambam’s Pediatric Nephrology Institute, speaks at the memorial ceremony at Treblinka. Photography: Rambam HCC.
This first-time participation of Rambam's delegation was so striking, that it merited a special report in the Times of Israel!
The delegation that flew to Poland was comprised of Jews, Muslims, and Christians from amongst Rambam's doctors, nurses, housekeeping staff, and management – united in their stand for shared values regarding the sanctity of life and peaceful coexistence. The International March of the Living was held at Auschwitz on April 18.
The 48-member delegation is being led by Professor Michael Halberthal, director general and CEO of Northern Israel's largest tertiary medical center. The delegation will participate in a three-kilometer silent march between Auschwitz and Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp complex built during World War II. They have already visited two death camps, Treblinka and Majdanek, as well as other sites symbolizing the horrors of the Holocaust across Europe.
“It is very moving to be a part of this event. Seeing it firsthand evokes deep feelings, but it is also exciting. Rambam's multicultural delegation, representing all work sectors is gaining a new-found perspective on contemporary Israel, the sanctity of life, humanity’s shared destiny, and the need for religious tolerance,” Professor Halberthal reports.
The Rambam Delegation in Poland. 1 &2) Professor Michael Halberthal at one of the memorial sites visited in Poland; 3) the 48-member Rambam delegation; and 4) Majdanek Concentration Camp in Poland. Photography courtesy of Rambam HCC.
Professor Halberthal Shares His Thoughts While in Poland (in Hebrew)
Watch the Rambam Memorial Ceremony at Treblinka (in Hebrew)