Werner Reich, a 91-year-old Holocaust survivor, visited Baldwin Middle School to give the students a firsthand history lesson. Reich, of Smithtown, told stories of the horror he and his family experienced throughout the Holocaust. Reich’s presentation came while the students read and learned about the Holocaust in “The Diary of Anne Frank” and it taught students the impact of bullying and the importance of looking out for one another.
“The most important thing is the concept of… people doing nothing while bad things are happening,” Reich told News 12 Long Island. “I don’t want them to walk away with the idea, ‘boy did he suffer.’ I want them to walk away with the idea ‘this is what happens when people don’t take care of eachother.'”
Students said it was a difficult presentation to watch, but it taught them a significant lesson about bullying and the way they treat eachother, according to News 12 Long Island.
Reich’s goal is to teach the students that everyone has a job to make the world a better place. He plans to continue to travel the world, sharing his story and spreading this message, according to News 12 Long Island.
