by stacey palevsky
staff writer
Flower stands adorn nearly every street corner in downtown San Francisco. They are simply part of the scenery.
But on April 16, a bouquet of white tulips took on greater significance.
“It’s one of those tiny but huge experiences you just want to share,” said Ken Kramarz, former director of Camp Tawonga.
Kramarz, who now conducts leadership trainings for numerous Bay Area agencies, happened to be in Tawonga’s Steuart Street offices that day when a woman walked in holding a bouquet of flowers.
“We’re looking at her, like, ‘Hello, can we help you?’” he recalled.
The woman, who refused to give her name, began to cry. Rather than explain herself, she simply gave Kramarz the flowers and left.
There was a note, which read:
“I read in the paper that today was a day of remembrance for those who suffered and died during the Holocaust. I was born in 1940, and had no direct connection of any sort with anyone involved in any way. Perhaps the horrors began to sink in here in the USA, around 1945-47, when I would have been a little girl. It continues to distress me so deeply that human beings can be that horrible. All my nightmares and fears connect directly to the Holocaust.
“So these flowers are to express grief, pain, tenderness, and humanity for all those who have suffered through such unspeakable horrors. I have tried to live my life in an opposite way, being kind and supportive and accepting to the best of my ability, looking for the spark of life and hope and beauty everywhere.
“Peace be with you.”
Signed: “A well wisher.”
The entire office was stunned, Kramarz said. “Sometimes we think we’re alone in the world, because we’re a small minority of people.
“But we’re not [alone],” he continued. “This is a nice reminder that we’re not.”
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California