Yesterday, Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center was honoured to join the Baycrest Foundation and From the Depths in presenting the Survivor Torah Project at Baycrest, where residents who are Holocaust survivors participated in the rewriting of a Torah scroll, which was discovered more than 75 years after being hidden during the Holocaust.

During the Holocaust, a rabbi in a Polish village had entrusted the Torah to his neighbour, a shepherd, as Jews in the area were being rounded up by the German Nazis and deported to Treblinka extermination camp. Decades later, the scroll was discovered by From the Depths in dire condition, with half of the scroll used as rags by the shepherd's family.

The Torah scroll is now being restored, letter by letter, by Holocaust survivors around the world, with Jonny Daniels, Founder of From the Depths, leading the effort through collaborations with local organizations.

It was brought to Toronto this week for local survivors to join in the rewriting process, with dozens of survivors in attendance with their loved ones and caregivers to be part of this special project. Once completed, the Torah scroll will find its new home in the synagogue of the President of Israel's residence.

We are proud to support such a meaningful project, a symbol of remembrance for the Jews that perished in the Holocaust as well as hope and triumph.
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