Vickie and Keren-Miriam at the end of a marvellously productive and meaningful four days in Flensburg that Keren-Miriam planned and coordinated.
The depth of her kindness, intellect and beauty present themselves gently. There is nothing pretentious about her.
And yet …
One marvels at how she does so much so efficiently
Keren-Miriam Foerst Haedicke is first and foremost a devoted single mother of two beautiful and sensitive children. Seeing to their needs is a full time job.
She is also an Ob-Gyn physician whose busy practice and the enormous number of women who depend on her for care and comfort are far more than a full time job.
Given all she has on her plate I marvel at how Dr.Foerst Haedicke found the time to plan and attend to every single detail of the wonderful four days Vickie and I spent in Flensburg. She arranged with the local High School for Vickie and me to present three 90 minute lessons about Judaism and the Holocaust to three different classes. She spent considerable time with the coordinating teacher working out the particulars.
She arranged for me to speak at two Kristallnacht commemorations. The first was at the Jewish cemetery and the second (along with Vickie) at the magnificent Church of St. Nikolai. The experiences were unforgettable.
She also set up two very well-attended opportunities for me to speak about my book, What’s in It for Me? Finding Ourselves in Biblical Narratives. The first was in Roman Catholic church and the second in the synagogue of Flensburg. Both of these events required considerable time and planning.
She also saw to it that we had wonderful tours of major sites in Flensburg and an excursion to villages across the nearby Danish border.
And all of this was on top of her amazing effort to plan, execute and sponsor the Oneg Shabbat for the Kabbalat Shabbat service I conducted which was the first Jewish service held in Friedrichsstadt since 1938. How special that was!
On Shabbat morning she and her daughter Hannah joined us and a small group for an extensive look at Chaye Sarah, the weekly Torah portion. Later that evening Vickie, Keren-Miriam and I enjoyed Havdalah together. As we sang for Eliyahu Ha-Navi (Elijah the Prophet) and the hope for the future he represents, we felt like family.
As we left Flensburg and said goodbye to one another all three of us, Vickie, Keren-Miriam and I all hoped that it will not be too long until we share a family reunion.
Finding Ourselves In The Bible 