In 2020 students established a Club of Modern History with the ambition to uncover the stories of their lost neighbors. In 2021, they laid the first eight stolpersteine ​​in Nymburk and organised a ceremony for the Pickové family (Strach Evičky Pickové – YouTube). Since then, they have laid another eleven stolpersteine for five families, including six this year as part of My Hometown.

Students have researched the histories of all the Holocaust victims they have laid stones for, working with archival materials and interviewing the descendants of survivors and victims. They have visited many important sites to help them with their research, including the Terezín Memorial, the Memorial Lety u Písku and Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial.

Not only have the students revealed Stolpersteine for six families, they have also presented the stories of Nymburk’s missing neighbours at public events, following their extensive research via the archives to uncover the story of each family. The students are now working on new research which will culminate in the laying of more Stolpersteine.

‘On the Trail of Missing Neighbours’ was presented at events in the Nymburk Theatre and Municipal Library, at a student conference in Prague and at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The history club have organised study tours for visiting students from America and France, and they are now supporting the development of Schindler’s Ark, a new museum in Brnenec.