In a sign that Jewish life is returning to normal, March of the Living, the annual trip that sees hundreds of Canadian teenagers journey to Poland and Israel, is planning to travel again in 2022 after a two-year hiatus.
Typically, the two-week trip takes high school students, accompanied by adult chaperones and Holocaust survivors, to Polish cities and concentration camps, where they observe Yom ha-Shoah.
Then, they travel to Israel and participate in Yom ha-Zikaron and Yom ha-Atzmaut, to remember Israel’s fallen soldiers and celebrate the country’s independence.
In 2019, the last year the trip ran, 505 students from across Canada participated. Montreal, which organizes its own trip, had 230 students, while another 275 came from Toronto and the rest of Canada.
In 2020, Toronto offered a virtual March of the Living: 215 students who met survivors online and participated in educational and volunteer programs, said Witnee Karp, the event’s outreach manager in Toronto.
Despite the ever-present threat of COVID, the trip is planning to run.
“We’re still in the early stages of planning, we’re working closely with medical professionals,” said Karp. “It may look different, but the purpose will definitely be the same.”
A number of Holocaust survivors, whose testimony is a powerful element of the trip, have indicated that they are interested in travelling with the group again this year.
In Montreal, however, the decision has been made not to include survivors—all of whom are senior citizens—due to the health risks involved, said Tara Kaufman, director of GenMtl and Jewish identity programs.
Decisions about the centrepiece of the trip, the three km march between Auschwitz and Birkenau with thousands of people from around the world, will be made by the international March of the Living closer to the date, depending on the conditions in Poland, Kaufman said. Canadian delegations will also consult with their own medical professionals.
Registration usually opens early in the fall. But, this year, enrolment opened in early December and closes a few weeks afterward.
Despite the uncertainty, interest in the trips is high, organizers said. In Montreal, 180 people attended a recent information session.
Still, participants are being advised to get the best travel insurance they can find.
Montreal students who missed participating in the March of the Living over the last two years can join a trip planned for CEGEP students which will run in May, when school ends.
In Toronto, the trip usually available to students in Grade 11 is being extended to those in Grade 12 this year.
For more information, in Montreal email [email protected].
In the rest of Canada, visit marchofthelivingcanada.org.
