December 28, 2005

Hecht’s ideas for the exhibit stem from his own personal connection to the victims of the Holocaust. “A pivotal and important day for my family and me was my Bar Mitzvah, the coming of age ceremony where a boy becomes a man. After the ceremony, my father introduced me to the elders. The men shook my hand with their sleeves rolled up, revealing the concentration camp numbers branded on their arms,” he said.

The experiences of Hecht’s family, friends and neighbors have remained with him, and encouraged him to produce drawings in their memory. His exhibit, titled: “Never Forget: The Knife Drawings of Michael Hecht” will be on display in the front entrance of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum.

The Wisconsin Veterans Museum is a free public educational activity of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs and is located at 30 W. Mifflin St., across the street from the State Capitol. The Museum is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (year round) and Sundays (April through September) from noon to 4 p.m. The Museum’s Research Center is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and by appointment. For more information contact Jeff Kollath, at 608- 261-0541, or go to: http://museum.dva.state.wi.us.