On April 27, Ashley Tsymbal, an eighth grader at Lexington Montessori School, was recognized as one of six winners of the 19th Annual Israel Arbeiter Holocaust Essay Contest, a competition that is part of the annual Boston’s Community Commemoration of Yom HaShoah. The six students from Greater Boston, who received framed certificates onstage from Arbeiter’s son, Jack, at the downtown State Room event, will also travel to Washington this spring on an educational trip to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Tsymbal was joined by Jacob Brenner, a seventh grader at McCall Middle School in Winchester; Jessica Marill, at eighth grader at Weston Middle School; Leah Farb, an 11th grader at Noble and Greenough School; Navya Karki, a 10th grader at Bedford High School; and Daniel Shaer, an 11th grader at Boston University Academy.
The event also included interludes by the Zachor Choral Ensemble and the ShenaniGanns a cappella group, candle lightings for the six million Jews who perished, Holocaust survivors in the Boston community who recently passed, liberating soldiers Ellsworth “Al” Rosen and Cranston “Chan” Rogers—who both died this past year—and family members of those in attendance. Survivor Tamara Lvovich shared her testimony for the first time. The consuls general of Israel, Germany Benny Sharoni and Dr. Sonja Kreibich, along with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, also gave remarks. Wu, accompanied by her baby daughter, joined the post-event observance at the New England Holocaust Memorial. Other attendees included Boston City Councilors Ed Flynn and Ben Weber, State Representative Tommy Vitolo and JALSA Director Cindy Rowe.
Tsymbal’s essay begins with a D’var Torah (a “word of Torah,” a traditional Jewish commentary or analysis of a weekly Torah portion) that she wrote with her brother for their b’nai mitzvah (shared bar and bat mitzvah ceremony). “My brother’s D’var was about how the Jews wandered through the desert for 40 years, and when they finally got to Jerusalem, instead of looking for food and shelter, they sat and wrote the Torah, which contained their history,” she writes. “It’s interesting that even long ago, the Jews considered it important to write their history and learn from it. Stories like this one teach that it is important to learn from our history, so people and communities can grow stronger,” Tsymbal writes.
And that history shows us that we must keep hatred from spiraling, and repeating. “Learning stories of the Holocaust teaches lessons about resilience and hope, and how those tools are powerful in combating antisemitism,” she adds, recalling the many restrictive laws imposed in 1930s Germany. “Nazis made it harder for Jews and non-Jews to interact,” she writes. “Learning about the history of these laws encourages people to think harder about what they actually mean and who they impact.”
Tsymbal also takes it up to our own times. “There are changes happening in the current government that feel like the goal is to make a group of people seem like the ‘other,’” she writes. “For example, some of the changes in immigration laws have labeled certain groups as bad or unwanted.” The Nazis’ guise, she adds, citing USHMM materials, “appeared to depict the Nazi government as stepping in and ‘restoring order.’” Tsymbal describes one piece of propaganda of a Jew standing behind American, Soviet and British flags. “It strengthened people’s ideas that the Jews were enemies,” she writes, comparing such tactics with hateful social media posts and messages.”
Tsymbal lives in Arlington, where she is in the town’s travel basketball league. At school, she has participated in the Model UN program and has played flag football. She has grand ambitions: “In the future,” she said, “I think I want to become a lawyer and travel the world.” She learned about the contest from her teacher: “She sent an email to me during spring break about the contest.” It wasn’t a class assignment, but she decided to enter. “I thought maybe someone would read my essay, and learn something about the Holocaust, and I thought that it was important that a lot of people know about the Holocaust,” said Tsymbal.
Each year, the reflections and writings of these young Bostonians are an integral part of the Yom HaShoah event. “The essay contest honors Holocaust survivor Izzy Arbeiter and engages students across Greater Boston with weighty historical themes that are still relevant today,” event coordinator JCRC explains in the call for submissions flyer. The essay prompts vary, and this year, there were three: 1) “What parts of Holocaust history are most important for us to remember today?” 2) “How can learning about the Holocaust help us confront contemporary antisemitism and hate?” and 3) “How can you, your peers, or your school foster a more inclusive community?” The 400-800 word entries were judged on originality, knowledge, style, and depth.
Back to Tsymbal’s essay, where she warns against heeding false and contrived viewpoints. “Today’s propaganda can appear in the form of social media,” she writes. “People believe messages they see online, even if they aren’t true. Social media posts are seen all over the world, and quickly, by all ages. The power of social media is a reminder that hateful messages are all over the world, and recognizing hate online is another step to stopping antisemitism.”
Tsymbal also cites instances of non-Jews helping Jews to safety during the Holocaust. “The lesson of looking out for others and helping out instead of just standing by is still an important idea today.” For her, the most important thing about being Jewish is knowing that there is always a community there to support her. “While there is still hate and antisemitism in the world, and events like the Holocaust have happened and could happen again, if we don’t pay attention and learn from our past mistakes, we are bound to make them again.”
How did it feel to have her entry selected as a winner? “When I learned that I won, I was really happy and excited that I was going to be a part of the memorial day,” Tsymbal said, adding that she was looking forward to D.C. “I recently learned that I had a family member who escaped the war by moving to Shanghai, and there is information about him at the museum, and I think it will be good to learn more about him.”
“This contest honors the legacy of Holocaust survivor Israel ‘Izzy’ Arbeiter z”l, who dedicated his life to Holocaust education and remembrance,” the JCRC flyer describes. “Against all odds, Izzy survived the Holocaust, though he lost most of his family. Sadly, Izzy passed away in October 2021, but his commitment to educating future generations endures through this essay contest, a lasting tribute to his remarkable legacy.”
Ashley Tsymbal Contact:
atsymbal@lexmontessori.org,Ilya_Tsymbal@iname.com
Additional historical context and resources can be found at jcrcboston.org/essaycontest.