A taste of hope: Honouring the memory of Alex Buckman OBM

by Ellie Vogel

(AJNews) – In 2023, I had the privilege of participating in the March of the Living, a two-week international Holocaust education program in Poland and Israel. I travelled with the Coast to Coast delegation of 51 Canadian high school students. Together, we attended sites of unimaginable loss bearing witness to our history.

Each delegation was accompanied by a Holocaust survivor to bring a personal perspective to the experience. Our delegation was honoured to travel alongside Alex Buckman. Alex shared his testimony with us to ensure that his story and other survivors’ stories would live on through our deeper understanding. Tragically, Alex passed away while in Poland with us. Though his loss was devastating, the impact he had on each of us was immeasurable.

While sharing his testimony, Alex spoke of his Aunt Becky and her experience in the Ravensbrück concentration camp. While imprisoned, she found a way to write down a recipe for “gâteau à l’orange” (orange cake). In these circumstances, it was an act by her of hope and resistance. In memory of Aunt Becky and the other victims of the Holocaust, Alex asked us to bake the orange cake with our friends and families and share his story.

This past year, alumni of the Coast to Coast delegation came together to fulfill that promise. We created A Taste of Hope, a student-led initiative spanning five cities across Canada, to honour Alex’s memory and fulfill our promise to Alex to share his and his family’s story.

On February 1, more than 100 people in five cities gathered to bake gâteau à l’orange and listen to Alex’s recorded testimony. The event was successful with all participants impacted by Alex’s story and the history he represents. People shared meaningful conversation and connection over slices of delicious orange cake.

Through this event, we raised funds for the World Federation of Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Descendants, an organization Alex was heavily involved with. The Federation works to build community among survivors and their descendants while advancing Holocaust education to combat antisemitism, bigotry, and hate in all its forms. Supporting this mission is a natural extension of Alex and his life’s work.

A Taste of Hope is more than a baking project. It is a commitment to remembrance, to education, and to ensuring that stories like Alex’s are never forgotten. In sharing a simple orange cake, we share history, resilience, and hope.

To learn more about A Taste of Hope and support this initiative, please follow us on Instagram @tastehope or visit our fundraising page.