“It was an absolute pleasure getting to experience Heidi sharing her mother’s experience, through engaging stories and interesting and personal artifacts, with our students. She not only kept the attention of 75 7th and 8th graders (along with about a dozen teachers and other staff), she left a mark on them. After she left, and long before it could be officially added to the school library, kids were asking to read Tutti’s Promise. The following day, when the kids came back, they had follow-up questions, not only about Heidi’s presentation and Tutti’s experiences, but about the Holocaust, World War 2, and other forms of genocide in world history. It truly sparked an interest for so many of our kids.

Everyone knows the story of Anne Frank (and rightfully so), but it’s important to gain multiple perspectives about the events surrounding the Holocaust, and without hesitation, I would recommend Heidi’s presentation for any school or class that is looking to do so.

The only thing I would change is the size of the audience. While Heidi truly did hold all of the students’ attention, the fact that it is such a personal story, with so much information, leads me to believe that it could have been even more powerful if the students had a more intimate environment to engage with Heidi and her vast knowledge. Unfortunately, and at the last minute, we needed to combine two groups, which Heidi handled with complete grace.”