MEMORIAL STAY 2021

The students of the Second Bac Pro class of Digital and Energy Transitions Professions carried out a "memorial" stay from November 22 to 26, 2021.

Regional Resistance and Freedom Center of Thouars (79)

The students visited the permanent exhibition in the company of a mediator and with a paper document to be completed as the visit progressed. This activity notably enabled them to remember the major events in the history of the Second World War and to discover the life of the Thouarsais under the Occupation. They were very diligent and attentive.

They were then able to discover an unknown part of our history, that of the Gypsy community, victim of prejudice and stigmatization long before the Second World War. They were deeply shocked by the way the French authorities considered them, in particular by the establishment of the anthropometric logbook in force until 1969 and then replaced by the circulation book only abolished in 2017.

Finally, we visited the Montreuil Bellay internment camp with Jean Richard, known as “Jean-Jean”, part of whose family was interned in this camp.

Their involvement and seriousness during visits and educational workshops were underlined by the two mediators, Noémie and Marion, and by Virginie Daudin.

Drancy Shoah Memorial

We were received by a mediator at the Memorial who provided the visit and the educational workshop. It began with the presentation of the monument by Shelomo Selinger, a Polish artist, in homage to the Jews murdered by the Nazis. In the background, part of the former Drancy camp, also called the “city of La Muette”.

We then entered the Memorial and the mediator showed us a model showing the configuration of the Drancy camp.

By participating in the educational workshop " Looking for clues », the pupils were able to discover the career of Georges Horan-Koiransky and Annette Landauer, French internees in Drancy.

At the end of our day at the Memorial, we had the pleasure of meeting Thierry Berkover, who told us the story of his father, André, deported in 1944, at the age of 14 with his older brother, Guy, and his mother. Very moving moment, we all had tears in our eyes, especially as the students told me, when he took out the hat that a Russian soldier gave to his father when he was released.

Senate visit

Thursday morning, we had the privilege of having a guided tour of the Senate. The students were very sensitive and amazed by the beauty of the decorations, especially those in the guestbook room. They were once again very attentive to what the guide presented to them.

Visit of the Invalides

Thursday afternoon, we walked to the Invalides museum, where Hélène Staës, historian at the Resistance Foundation, was waiting for us.

We started with the Cours des Invalides. Hélène told the students that during the Second World War, a couple of resistance fighters and their daughter, the Morins, had hidden English airmen under the roof of the church while the Invalides were occupied by the Germans.

We then went to the Army Museum. With Hélène Staës, we have chosen to limit ourselves to a few rooms. We have targeted rooms related to World War II.

After this very fascinating visit, we left the Invalidé and crossed the Avenue des Champs Elysées to reach the Arc de Triomphe and take part in the rekindling ceremony of the Flame.

Flame rekindling ceremony under the Arc de Triomphe

Thursday evening, we took part in the rekindling ceremony of the Flame under the Arc de Triomphe. We were received by the Flame Committee.

With the support of AFMD-DT 16, the students and adults present laid a flower on the tomb of the unknown soldier. A student, Jérémy, volunteered to carry the flag during the ceremony and another, Douman, agreed to hold the sword to rekindle the Flame.

This solemn ceremony deeply touched and moved the students.

Testimonials from students who participated in the memorial stay

Robin: “What also pleased and marked me was when we went to the Arc de Triomphe to revive the Flame. It was really moving as a ceremony. »

Jordan: “Participating in the rekindling of the Flame under the Arc de Triomphe was an interesting and very rewarding experience for me. I think it was lucky because not everyone is so lucky. Placing roses at the foot of the Flame, attending the ceremony and singing the Marseillaise there was an event that I appreciated. »

Sullyvan: “During this stay I enjoyed the activities we did in Thouars, because I learned a lot about the life of Gypsies, in particular thanks to the film, and I also learned a lot about their internment and/or their deportation. I especially remembered the part where we talked about the anthropometric notebook that was used, the purpose of which was to file the Gypsies and find out where they were going. »

Clement: “What struck me the most during this educational trip was the day spent in the Senate. We had the privilege of attending a parliamentary session. We also visited the guestbook room. »

Jonathan B.: “The most significant episode for me was the testimony of Thierry Berkover. He told us the story of his father, André, who was deported in 1944 at the age of 14 with his older brother, Guy, and his mother. The living conditions were deplorable. It's insane! »

Tiago: « What I preferred even if everything was interesting is the rekindling of the Flame under the Arc de Triomphe. It's a ceremony that I really enjoyed. […] to be able to pay homage to the millions of soldiers who died in combat so that we are free today”

Leo: “What struck me the most during this educational stay was meeting Thierry Berkover, who told us the story of his father, who was deported when he was barely 15 years old. It was very touching because we felt the emotion. »

Kyllian: « In the trip we did, I have two activities that I really loved. These are the educational workshops around the fate of the Gypsies and the meeting with Thierry Berkover who told us the story of his father, André, deported with his brother and his mother. These activities moved me”

Roman: “What I liked the most during this trip to Paris was the visit to the Senate. It was so big and beautiful. During this visit there was a guide who told us the history of the Senate which was built in 1615 for Marie de Médicis. We saw different rooms like the hemicycle”

Jeremy: “This memory trip brought me knowledge. In particular with the unusual story of André Berkover, the father of Thierry Berkover whom we met or the wonder of the many rooms of the Senate. This trip has been more than beneficial for me. If a trip like this had to be done again, I would commit myself without hesitation. »

Aydhenn: “During the educational trip, my favorite activity was visiting the Invalides. »

Nolan: “The part that I liked the most during the trip was the visit to the Senate. Its size is impressive, its history is very surprising (like the fact that it was a rich Italian (Marie de Médicis) who gave the order to build the Luxembourg Palace). The surprising amount of gold, the incredible number of paintings, the dazzling size of the rooms. It dazzled me. I have kept a very good memory of it; it's not every day that we have the opportunity to see a Palace like this. Especially on a school trip. »

Brian: “The moments that marked me during this trip were first at the Shoah Memorial, where Thierry Berkover tells us about the trying adventures experienced by his father during the Second World War (39-45). What stood out was that of the Gypsies interned in camps all over France under French authority. »

Duman: « During this stay, the thing that struck me the most was the visit to the Senate, because this place represents a lot for France just because of its history. Indeed, this place is a place where legislative decisions are made by senators who are themselves elected by our mayors. »

Matheo: “I found this trip very interesting and it taught me a lot of things, mainly about the Gypsies during the 39-45 war. The testimonies that we listened to, such as that of Thierry BERKOVER who told the story of his father, interned in Drancy and deported to Auschwitz, touched me a lot. »