United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: Beyond Our Walls Campaign

The Molly Blank Fund (the Fund) recently granted $1.5 million to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (the Museum) in support of its 30^th anniversary campaign, Beyond Our Walls: Ensuring the Relevance of the Holocaust for New Generations. The grant to the Museum will help support the campaign in achieving milestones over the next five years that will ensure that Holocaust history – and lessons about the fragility of democracy, the power of propaganda and the dangers of hatred, antisemitism and inaction – are taught beyond the walls of the Museum to people, especially youth, from all walks of life and in underserved communities. A living memorial to the Holocaust, the Museum inspires citizens and leaders worldwide to confront hatred, prevent genocide and promote human dignity.

The Fund is proud to support this cause on behalf of our chairman’s beloved mother, Molly Blank, as part of an investment strategy that focuses on at-risk youth, arts and culture, and Jewish causes emphasizing social justice and interfaith coalitions.

Since its opening 30 years ago, the Museum has worked with a wide range of local, national and international program partners. Because of this tireless work, millions of teachers, students and the wider public in the U.S. and around the world have gained an understanding of the Holocaust and the need to prevent future genocides.

The Museum has bold objectives for the future, as well. These plans include building the field of Holocaust education, advancing the relevance of the Holocaust to new generations and protecting the truth of the Holocaust. In the next five years, the two most consequential goals will be completing the revitalization of the Museum’s primary educational tool, the permanent exhibition, and growing the online Holocaust Encyclopedia users to 35 million individuals. 

In addition, launching the first-ever U.S.-based Holocaust Education Research Center will provide crucial data and insights about the effectiveness of various educational strategies. Coupled with ongoing visitor research in permanent and special exhibitions, these findings will shape future work and help ensure that the Museum and the field of Holocaust education are having the impact the Museum is striving for.  

“Virulent antisemitism is on the rise and the truth of the Holocaust is increasingly under attack just as we are losing the eyewitness generation. So we must respond to these challenges by protecting the truth and ensuring the relevance of the Holocaust for new generations worldwide,” said Sara Bloomfield, director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. “The Museum is uniquely suited to pursue these bold aspirations thanks to the generous support of funders, such as the Molly Blank Fund at the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, as well as the Museum’s federal status, international stature, global reach, deep expertise and broad public trust.”

The Museum just concluded a $1 billion fundraising campaign that exceeded its goal and raised $1.2 billion from more than 556,000 donors in all 50 U.S. states, helping to ensure ongoing education and dialogue in the face of monumental challenges in the world.