An unusual piece of the Jewish experience

LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY — The Sullivan County Community College will open a new exhibition, “Learning Seeds,” on July 22 at 1:00 p.m. at Seelig Theatre, that depicts the story of Gross-Breesen, an agricultural training farm for Jewish youth that was established in Germany before the outbreak of World War II.

Steve Strauss, an acclaimed photographer based in NYC, was first drawn to the subject when he was shown an original photo album depicting Gross-Breesen. “There was one black and white photograph of a barn interior with sunlight pouring through a lone window onto a triangular pillar of harvested grain,” he said. “When I was told where it was taken and what the purpose of the farm was, the idea for a mixed media exhibition immediately came to mind.”

Dr. Curt Bondy, a brilliant educator, ran the 1930s farm. Under Bondy’s tutelage, the young men and women were immersed in a program that balanced hard physical farm labor with lessons on Jewish life, German history and social philosophy. Many of Gross-Breesen’s youth were able to immigrate safety to foreign countries with a need for their skills.

“Learning Seeds” will focus on the Gross-Breeseners who took Bondy’s teachings out into the world. The exhibition itself is a mix of original photos taken at Gross-Breesen, documentary footage and NPR/WJFF interviews of deceased and living Gross-Breesners.

For more information visit grossbreesen.com.