MOHNTON, Pa.\u00a0\u2013 A new chapter is unfolding at the Berks Military History Museum\u00a0\u2014 one that will preserve the stories the world must never forget.<\/p>\n
Part of the museum’s latest expansion is being transformed into a Holocaust museum, one unlike anything else in the region. Though still under construction, the project is already generating attention for its ambitious vision and powerful message.<\/p>\n
“You’re going to see the building today, and then you’re going to hear about some of the plans that we have for the museum,” said state Rep. Mark Gillen, a Republican who represents part of Berks County and who is closely involved with the effort. “Exhibit areas, artifacts \u2014some that we have, but many that we have to acquire.”<\/p>\n
On Thursday, community leaders toured the developing space and shared what this project could mean for generations to come.<\/p>\n
“What happened in World War II to Jews cannot ever be forgotten,” said Berks County Board of Commissioners Chair Christian Leinbach.<\/p>\n
The museum is expected to cost around $3.5 million\u00a0\u2014 all of it privately funded. For some of the key figures behind the project, the work is deeply personal.<\/p>\n
“My father escaped from Nazi Germany in December 1937. He had to leave behind his parents and other relatives,” said Vic Hammill, one of the supporters. “We lost seven family members to the Holocaust.”<\/p>\n
But this initiative is not just about remembrance; it’s about warning.<\/p>\n
“Sadly, the timing of this project couldn’t be any better,” Hammill added. “There’s been a significant increase in anti-Semitism in the last couple of years. It’s the worst amount of anti-Semitic acts in the 80 years since the Holocaust and since the end of World War II.”<\/p>\n
Once completed, the museum will feature immersive exhibits, survivor testimonies and partnerships with local schools to educate future generations and confront the ongoing dangers of hate and intolerance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MOHNTON, Pa.\u00a0\u2013 A new chapter is unfolding at the Berks Military History Museum\u00a0\u2014 one that will preserve the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13367,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[10215,10212,10216,10217,10213,10211,10210,28,128,130,129,10214],"class_list":["post-13366","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county-board-of-commissioners","tag-berks-military-history-museum","tag-christian-leinbach","tag-holocaust-museum","tag-mark-gillen","tag-mark-m-gillen","tag-mohnton","tag-pennsylvania","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-vic-hammill"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13366","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13366"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13366\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13367"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13366"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13366"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13366"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}