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MEMORIAL AND MUSEUM AUSCHWITZ-BIRKENAU FORMER GERMAN NAZI
CONCENTRATION AND EXTERMINATION CAMP

News

New hostel will revolutionise volunteering at Auschwitz Memorial

ps
29-08-2024

The construction of a hostel that will primarily serve volunteers and participants of educational projects conducted at the Museum by the International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust has been completed.

 

This three-story building with 97 sleeping places is located right next to the new Visitor Services Center of the Auschwitz Memorial.

"This will undoubtedly revolutionize volunteering and also improve the organization of various conferences for teachers and other forms of in-depth education," said Dr. Piotr M. A. Cywiński, the Museum director.

"Our experience has shown that the main obstacle in developing multi-day educational sessions has been the issue of affordable accommodation nearby. Similar limitations have also negatively impacted the development of volunteering, as for many young people willing to dedicate their time to support our mission, hotel prices have often been an insurmountable barrier," emphasized Piotr Cywiński.

"The opening of the hostel is extremely important for the development of both volunteering and various types of internships. Above all, we will be able to carry out a much larger number of volunteer projects on-site. Importantly, the hostel is not just a place to sleep near the Museum but also a space for working both in groups and individually," said Katarzyna Marcak, who heads the Volunteering Office at the International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust.

In 2023, nearly 600 volunteers and interns supported the Museum's mission, both on-site and online.

"Volunteering at the Museum is a way for me to help keep the memory of the camp victims alive. It's a response to a heartfelt need to do something concrete to ensure that this memory endures. Volunteering is also a unique opportunity to accompany the Survivors, which for me is a great honor and privilege. Every such meeting becomes the most important lesson about how people did this to other people, human to human. I do not consent to a world where such principles functioned. Thus, volunteering is also my form of protest against all manifestations of exclusion, prejudice, and hatred," said this year's volunteer award recipient Agnieszka Fuczik.

"Before long, there will be no Survivors left who can tell their stories themselves. Future generations will not be able to hear their narratives personally, which is such an important educational tool. How will the memory of the Holocaust look in the future? Thanks to my internships, I had the chance to see how the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum manages such questions. Preserving memory and the site are more important today than ever. Our generation must prevent something like this from happening again," said another award winner, Karina Zander.

The final stage of preparing the hostel for opening was also supported by the Museum's current volunteers, who helped prepare sleeping areas and organize and furnish communal spaces.

"Because this was a different type of task than what we usually do, the atmosphere was less formal, allowing us to get to know each other better and talk, which we usually don't have the opportunity to do during museum ceremonies," said Alicja Mróz.

"I'm glad I could help with the opening of the Hostel. I hope I can participate in similar projects again in the future," said Joanna Mańka.

All those willing to engage in helping the Museum as volunteers—both on-site and online—are invited to contact the Volunteering Office. More information can be found here.

The construction of the hostel was made possible by extraordinary support from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland and private donors. The Ministry's subsidy amounted to 26.9 million PLN.

Ronald S. Lauder, chairman of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Foundation and president of the World Jewish Congress, who has long been a donor and supporter of the Memorial Site, donated 5 million USD for the project.

An additional half a million USD was contributed by Joel Citron, vice-chairman of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Foundation board, and his wife Ulrika, who had already been donors to the Memorial Site.

The hostel space also includes a restaurant available to Museum visitors.