NEW YORK - Connor Roche, a Darlington resident who is studying at the United States Military Academy, was among 14 cadets and midshipmen from the Military Academy, U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Air Force Academy and the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, who was chosen by the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation to participate in the Center's American Service Academies Program.
Through participating in the program, the cadets and midshipmen learned how to examine history, become ambassadors of ethical behavior and take responsibility for upholding these values as future military leaders.
Cadets and midshipmen began orientation in Washington, D.C. and visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. On June 1, students arrived in New York City and attended additional training at the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust before going to Poland for two weeks. During the focused preparation, participants learned about the Holocaust and contemporary moral and ethical matters, met with historians and staff members from the two museums, took part in workshops on military leadership, heard survivor testimony and toured the institutions.
Cadets and midshipmen left for Poland on June 4. While in Poland, the participants learned first-hand about the rich, vibrant life of Jews in pre-war Poland, especially in the town of Oswiecim (Auschwitz). Each student met with Polish and American leaders, visited historic Jewish sites, attended workshops with Holocaust survivors and historians and visited and attended seminars at the Auschwitz-Birkenau camps, among other activities. The program in Oswiecim will help future military leaders understand what can happen in the absence of open and democratic governance, the ongoing relevance of the Holocaust to their work, and will inspire and empower them to share their insights and understanding with others.
Cadets and midshipmen returned to the U.S. on June 13.
Roche is a kinesiology major at the United States Military Academy, where he is currently the captain of the West Point marathon team. He plans on joining the Armor branch upon graduation and then pursuing a career in the field of orthotics and prosthetics.
The program was supported in part by The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany Inc. and Joan Felder, in memory of Marvin Felder.
Through participating in the program, the cadets and midshipmen learned how to examine history, become ambassadors of ethical behavior and take responsibility for upholding these values as future military leaders.
Cadets and midshipmen began orientation in Washington, D.C. and visited the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. On June 1, students arrived in New York City and attended additional training at the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust before going to Poland for two weeks. During the focused preparation, participants learned about the Holocaust and contemporary moral and ethical matters, met with historians and staff members from the two museums, took part in workshops on military leadership, heard survivor testimony and toured the institutions.
Cadets and midshipmen left for Poland on June 4. While in Poland, the participants learned first-hand about the rich, vibrant life of Jews in pre-war Poland, especially in the town of Oswiecim (Auschwitz). Each student met with Polish and American leaders, visited historic Jewish sites, attended workshops with Holocaust survivors and historians and visited and attended seminars at the Auschwitz-Birkenau camps, among other activities. The program in Oswiecim will help future military leaders understand what can happen in the absence of open and democratic governance, the ongoing relevance of the Holocaust to their work, and will inspire and empower them to share their insights and understanding with others.
Cadets and midshipmen returned to the U.S. on June 13.
Roche is a kinesiology major at the United States Military Academy, where he is currently the captain of the West Point marathon team. He plans on joining the Armor branch upon graduation and then pursuing a career in the field of orthotics and prosthetics.
The program was supported in part by The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany Inc. and Joan Felder, in memory of Marvin Felder.
