Travel agent is perfect fit for Holocaust Center upcoming trip

When the Holocaust Center decided to sponsor a trip centered around European Jewish Heritage July 10-20, they found the ideal travel agent in Oren Lotringer. As the director of Group Operations for Tourico Holidays, America's largest travel wholesaler, he had the right credentials for planning a complex, memorable trip.

More important, perhaps, he has a deep personal interest in the history the group will be exploring.

Like many of his generation, he learned about the Holocaust through books, and occasionally from grandparents who were often hesitant to talk about their "dark past." Over time, he learned that all four of his grandparents escaped through one means of another, but other family members were not so fortunate.

One of his grandfathers escaped into hiding, and eventually learned that he was the sole survivor among twelve siblings. Lotringer was able to look up the family names at Yad Vashem, the Israel Holocaust Museum, an experience he describes as something that "came upon him like an avalanche".

This tour, he says, will enable group members to "feel, see, touch and personally experience" history in a way that has far deeper meaning that a simple vacation get-away.

The tour, which includes stays in Warsaw, Krakow and Prague, is one that Lotringer calls "an educational experience of a lifetime."

He says that even in the most tragic places of Holocaust history, every location and every experience is meaningful. Beyond that, there will beauty, inspiration and joy-and an opportunity to travel with others who share this uniquely connected history.

Spaces are still available on the tour for a limited time. Information is online at http://www.holocaustedu.org or by calling 407-628-0555.