Learn the Stories of the Holocaust Be Empowered to Create a Better Future
Impactful Exhibits
Eternal Flame & Memorial Wall
Eternal Flame & Memorial Wall In Jewish practice, a twenty-four-hour candle is lit on the anniversary of the death of a parent or child. For many, there is no known…
The Boxcar
The Henrietta and Alvin Weisberg Gallery tells the horrors of deportation by rail to the ghettos, death camps, and concentration camps of Europe. The centerpiece is a Holocaust-era boxcar, much…
Anne Frank Tree & Garden
In 2009, The Zekelman Holocaust Center was selected as one of only eleven sites in the United States to receive a sapling from the tree that grew outside Anne Frank’s…
Portraits of Honor
Portraits of Honor: Our Michigan Holocaust Survivors Portraits of Honor was developed in 1999 by Dr. Charles Silow, the son of Holocaust survivors, and the Program for Holocaust Survivors and…
Genocide in the East
Featured in The New York Times, the Genocide in the East Gallery includes the latest historical research on mass shootings in Eastern Europe, known today as the “Holocaust by Bullets.”…
Heroism & the Hidden
The Heroism & the Hidden Gallery offers a distinct learning environment with multimedia case studies on hidden children and stirring stories of brave righteousness and personal sacrifice. Since most non-Jewish…
20th Century European Jewish Life
Pre-war European Jewish life was a thriving cultural tapestry. No matter where Jewish people lived, they built their lives around the universal and timeless fundamentals of work, education, home, religion,…
The November Pogrom & Kindertransport
The November Pogrom & Kindertransport The November Pogrom, also known as Kristallnacht, marked the first, state-sponsored violence against all Jews in German territory. One of the only successful attempts to…
The Camp System
Over its twelve-year existence, Nazi Germany and its allies established more than 44,000 camps and other types of prisons. These included concentration camps, forced labor camps, transit camps, ghettos, and…
Responsibility & Action
Responsibility & Action The history of the Holocaust forces us to grapple with our responsibility to fight against injustice and inhumanity anywhere. When antisemitism and other forms of hate arise,…
Local Survivor Stories
Barbara Cohen
Barbara (Schechter) Cohen was born in Bukaczowce, Poland (now part of Ukraine) in 1941. When Barbara was a baby, she and her parents were sent to live in a ghetto.…
George Erdstein
George Erdstein was born in Vienna, Austria in 1938 a few months after the Anschluss, the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany. At the time, his parents questioned if and…
Sophie Klisman
Sophie Teich Klisman was born in Lodz, Poland in 1929. After the Nazis invaded Poland, Sophie and her family were sent to live in the ghetto, where her parents and…
Hear first-hand experiences at Survivor Talk Sundays
Join us on Sundays at 12:00 PM to listen to personal accounts from Holocaust survivors who rebuilt their lives in Michigan.
Engaging Events
Friday Public Tours
Join us at The HC every Friday afternoon for a public tour of our new exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Survivor Talk Sundays: Barbara Cohen
Every survivor’s story is unique and provides a special, first-hand account of life before, during, and after the Holocaust. Hearing from local Michigan survivors helps us see all the victims…
Sunday Public Tours
Join us at The HC every Sunday afternoon for a public tour of our new exhibit following our Survivor Talk Sunday presentation. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who…
Free Admission Days at The HC
We are thrilled to offer free admission from December 22, 2025, through January 2, 2026, to deepen your understanding of Holocaust history and explore our renovated core exhibition during the…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Special Next Generation Speaker: Jeff Cymerint, Son of a Survivor
The HC proudly hosts a Next Generation Speaker program, inviting descendants of Holocaust survivors to tell the personal stories of their families during the Holocaust. This speaker program also shines…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Free Admission Days at The HC
We are thrilled to offer free admission from December 22, 2025, through January 2, 2026, to deepen your understanding of Holocaust history and explore our renovated core exhibition during the…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Special Survivor Talk: George Erdstein
Every survivor’s story is unique and provides a special, first-hand account of life before, during, and after the Holocaust. Hearing from local Michigan survivors helps us see all the victims…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Closed for Christmas
The Zekelman Holocaust Center will close on Wednesday, December 24, and Thursday, December 25, for the Christmas Eve and Christmas holidays. Regular operating hours will resume on Friday, December 26,…
Free Admission Days at The HC
We are thrilled to offer free admission from December 22, 2025, through January 2, 2026, to deepen your understanding of Holocaust history and explore our renovated core exhibition during the…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Special Next Generation Speaker: Barbara Wees, Daughter of a Survivor
The HC proudly hosts a Next Generation Speaker program, inviting descendants of Holocaust survivors to tell the personal stories of their families during the Holocaust. This speaker program also shines…
Friday Public Tours
Join us at The HC every Friday afternoon for a public tour of our new exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Free Admission Days at The HC
We are thrilled to offer free admission from December 22, 2025, through January 2, 2026, to deepen your understanding of Holocaust history and explore our renovated core exhibition during the…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
Special Next Generation Speaker: Dr. Charles Silow, Child of Survivors
The HC proudly hosts a Next Generation Speaker program, inviting descendants of Holocaust survivors to tell the personal stories of their families during the Holocaust. This speaker program also shines…
Sunday Public Tours
Join us at The HC every Sunday afternoon for a public tour of our new exhibit following our Survivor Talk Sunday presentation. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who…
Free Admission Days at The HC
We are thrilled to offer free admission from December 22, 2025, through January 2, 2026, to deepen your understanding of Holocaust history and explore our renovated core exhibition during the…
Special Holiday Public Tours
Join us at The HC for a series of special public tours of our core exhibit. Guided tours are led by knowledgeable docents who can provide additional details on artifacts,…
