Jaarverslag 2007 - Joods Historisch Museum

the Matzo now reside in the Obbene Shul, where more than
190 groups visited them last year. We are now engaged in major
publicity and marketing campaigns to raise awareness of the
Hollanders and their hospitality. Over the past year, the Children’s
Museum has proven to be a popular meeting place, and we will
continue exploring the many possibilities presented by this unique
concept. One noteworthy event was a birthday party for an
85­year­old, held in the Children’s Museum by special request.
Two new educational programmes have been developed for middle
and upper­level secondary pupils: Thuis bij de familie Hollander
en Max de Matze (At home with the Hollander family and Max the
Matzo) and Max de Matze en zijn broodfamilie (Max the Matzo and
his bread family). These lesson plans allow teachers and students
to prepare for museum visits while still in the classroom, and to
discuss the experience afterwards and place it in a wider context.
Encounters
The renovated museum is a foundation on which we can go on
building. The key words in our policy for the coming period are
enticement, bonding and encounters. How can we entice as
many people as possible to visit the museum, and how can we
forge bonds with not only those visitors, but also our neighbours
and the general public? And finally, how can we promote positive
encounters with Jewish culture and between different cultures?
We are still full of ambition, and with your help, we hope to continue
developing our museum. We hope that in keeping with the
original function of the four former synagogues – literally ‘places
of assembly’ – the museum will grow to become a true meeting
place for people, cultures and ideas.
Joël Cahen, Director
94 jaarverslag jhm 2007
Joël Cahen houdt openingstoespraak op 20 februari in de Grote Synagoge