Page 24 - 90-94 Meteor

~ The Meteor VES Students Face the Reality of the Holocaust
4
Issue 2 1994
Early in the morning of Sunday, December 12 all members of the student body and their advisors boarded buses to travel to Washington D.C. to witness a small part of what they had read and dis- cussed on campus just the week before. A visit to the Holocaust Museum was the culmination of talks, readings, and discussions on what most would describe as the most egregious crime ever commit- ted against others - the German Holocaust. It was a
painful but interesting prepa- ration beginning on Friday morning when Mr. Walter Storozon spoke to all new stu- dents, describing his impris- onment in the concentration camp in Auschwitz, Germany. Then on Saturday the prepara- tion continued with some stu- dents meeting with their advi- sors to read and discuss Night, an autobiographical account of life in Auschwitz and Buchenwald by Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel. Others watched a taped interview of
Mr. Wiesel conducted by Oprah Winfrey. By Sunday, everyone was ready for the museum and knew what they would see but not how they would feel about it.
Student Point of View
By Hunter Morrison
Q: What did you think of the visit to the Holocaust Museum?
I thought that it was extreme- lysad,butitisapartofourpast and we should not ignore it. I think that it was a good idea for VES to go.
The idea and intention were good, however, the negative atti- tudes that some of the students carried toward going prevented us from absorbing all of the inter- esting facts of the Holocaust.
I did not think that the entire student body needs to go to the Holocaust Museum. Just those students who were or had stud- ied it should have gone. I think this because we would have got- ten more out of it ifeveryone was more mature and educated on the subject.
The visit to me was terrific and a moving experience. I really learned so much that I did not know and got so much out of the museum, it was fun. The subject was quite sad and mnde me think about how our world is today. I also wish that our school would take more trips like this one.
The museum was really amazing and it stated the "story" of the Holocaust well. However, the gruesomeness of it prevented me from enjoying it as much as some of my friends did.
As weather conditions per- sisted, the VES community left in droves and most were gone in a record three hours. Never have students left school, legally, in such a short time.
The power returned to VES on Sunday evening and stu- dents returned on Monday as requested. Study hall was held that evening as usual and classes were back on schedule for the next day. But no one will ever forget the night the lights went out at VES.
Quality Screen Printing & Embroidery T -Shirts • Golf Shirts • Uniforms
Canvas Bags • Promotional Items C~omplete Art Department Offering Custom Design and Dlustration Services
HIGH PEAK Sportswear, Inc.
THE T-SHIRT FACTORY 924 Main Street Lynchburg,Vttghtia24504
(804) 846-5223 • Fax: (804) 847-7563 Editor's Apologies
• Anne Dunn (left) is Secretary-Treasurer of the Senior Class
• Ms. Grattan's name was misspelled
Before visiting the Holocaust Museum, VES students, including logan lane and Barry Cunningham were asked to read and discuss Night by Elie Wiesel , a sur- vivor of the Holocaust.
Editors - Logan Lane, Rebecca Todd
Photography Editor- Jason Arbusto
Staff Writers - Jason Arbusto, Ford Craven, Barry Cunningham, Logan Lane, Hunter Morrison, Rebecca Todd
Faculty Advisor- Gail J. Morrison
The Hers/mer-von Hoff Hybrid wins First Place
Terry Hershner (right), Gao van Hoff, and the 1980 modified Chevrolet were featured in the Lynchburg News and Advance on February 24. Terry and Gao entered the restored car in the Central VIrginia Regional Science Fair on March 26 and won first place for Team Projects.
Photo courtesy of Neuos and &ivanee
storm cont. from p. 2
a good time here, able to for- get about the cold, dark (and wet for some) rooms they would return to later. Before leaving the dining hall, the students were told not to take showers - that thought horri- fying to some! Breakfast would be served the next morning earlier than usual.
Going to the dining hall as they awoke, dodging tree limbs along the way, the stu- dents all heard the chime of "going home" float through
the air. The entire school was set on leaving campus even though no administrative per- son had given anyone permis- sion. There were many phone calls home! A t noon everyone was called to the chapel again and Mr. Garmey made the "going home" chime a reality. The power was out indefinitely and Mr. Garmey said it would be fine if students could find a nice warm place to stay until the power returned. School would resume on Monday.
The grounds at VES took a beating during the ice storm. Photo by Jason Arbusto
I