Bat Mitzvah Twinning Program

Background

Paige has decided to participate in the Bat Mitvah Twinning Program through Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center. The program matches b’nei mitzvah with a child who was killed during the Holocaust before the child had an opportunity to mark this important rite of passage. They usually share a biographical element with the celebrant, such as a name, birthday, or place of birth. The program allows participants to take an active part in the collective memory of Holocaust victims and to strengthen their own understanding of their heritage and history.

Bat Mitzvah Twin

Paige was matched with Felitzia Feigele Ohringer. Paige and Felitzia share the same birthday, July 12.

Felitzia was born in Antwerp, Belgium in 1933. Her parents, Nisan and Hadasa, were born in Poland and were part of the migration of Jews who emigrated from Poland to Belgium in the early 20th century. Her family moved to Ghent, Belgium after she was born.

In 1942, her family was sent to the Malines-Mechelen transit camp, which the Nazis had converted from military barracks in preparation for the deportation of Jews from Belgium. Starting in August 1942, two transports with about 1,000 Jews each left the camp every week for Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. On September 26, 1942, on Transport XI, Felitzia—then identified as Prisoner Number 2309—was deported to Auschwitz, where she was killed. She was nine years old.

As we celebrate this milestone for Paige, we also hold space for the memory of Felitzia.

“Memory has become a sacred duty of all people of goodwill.” ― Elie Wiesel