Courage to Care presenter Micky gave students a brief introduction to the context and events of the Holocaust. She then shared with us stories of ordinary people who bravely chose to do the right thing, saving people destined for concentration camps and standing up against the Nazi regime, (including Australia's William Cooper - founder and secretary of the Australian Aborigines' League who wrote a protest letter to the German government; Irena Sendler who saved children and babies; and Nicholas Winton who transported children to safety).

Students then met Yvonne, a Jewish survivor of the Holocaust born in Hungary. She recounted events from her early life in Budapest, including her mother's courageous escape from a train destined for a concentration camp, and of her experience as a refugee in Australia. She invited the students' questions and answered them with compassion and truth.

Students were introduced to other members of the Courage to Care team, who led them in discussion, reflecting on what they had learnt and considering how they too could stand up for others in their everyday lives.

Considering what they had heard and learnt, students produced a joint art installation on the ICS Food Truck, making note of some of the themes, words and concepts that stood out to them from the presentation, taking these into account to inform the creation of their own art works.

Here are some of the things students learnt, in their own words:

• "I learnt about Yvonne‘s story and all the things her family had to do to survive. I learnt that it wasn’t only Germany that discriminated against Jews. It was also other countries that were influenced by being allies with Germany."
• "I learnt about all the upstanders, who helped the Jewish community around the world when they needed it the most."
• "I learnt that you shouldn’t be racist and should tell everyone about history so that it doesn’t happen again."
• "I learnt that no matter how difficult the situation is, you should always try to be an upstander. Even if you can’t do much, a good deed is always returned."
• "I learnt that people can do great things."

Here are some of the students' takeaways from the presentation, in their own words:

• "I learnt that doing something is better than doing nothing. I also learnt that we should be upstanders, not bystanders."
• "Help someone if they are struggling. Helping the victim is the most important thing."
• "If I see a situation, I will not bystand."
• "I can help by telling an adult about it, e.g. if someone is being bullied at school, report it to a teacher."
• "I have learned from this course to think about my actions."
• "Be kind!"

Thank you to the volunteers from Courage to Care, who generously gave their time to come and talk with us about such relevant and important issues.

Mrs Jo Williams