Ryvchin tells Courage to Care lunch – live with kindness, respect and empathy

Against a backdrop of rising antisemitism in Australia, including schools and universities, Courage to Care NSW held its annual fundraising lunch on 4 March, drawing a capacity crowd of community leaders, supporters and Holocaust survivors.

Those in attendance included Australia’s Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism, Jillian Segal, Sydney Jewish Museum president Greg Shand and many directors of B’nai B’rith entities that support the organisation’s work. Six Holocaust survivors also attended, most of whom continue to speak regularly in schools across New South Wales.

Special guest speaker Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, was unable to attend in person after being invited to address the United Nations in New York and members of Congress in Washington, D.C.. He delivered his remarks via pre-recorded video, providing a strong endorsement of Courage to Care’s mission.

“We need to do everything we can by supporting wise and effective initiatives like Courage to Care,” Ryvchin said, “supporting their delivery of education programs, early intervention, which drives out ignorance and indifference before it becomes entrenched.

“We have to live by the memories of those taken from us, people who were defined by kindness, respect and empathy. The very values that Courage to Care leaves behind wherever it goes.”

He also noted that the organisation receives no recurrent government funding and relies solely on donations. He praised its partnership with the Sydney Jewish Museum as one that adds considerable value to both institutions and the broader community.

Ryvchin’s remarks were reinforced by ECAJ Head of Legal Simone Abel, who addressed the audience on the alarming rise of antisemitic incidents in Australian schools and universities.

CEO Ed St John then interviewed three students who had experienced the Courage to Care program in their schools. Each reflected on the program, which gave them the opportunity to hear from a Holocaust survivor and take part in a facilitated workshop exploring how to be an Upstander.

Courage to Care Chair Tom Curtis closed the lunch with a heartfelt appeal for support, speaking to the organization’s renewed sense of urgency and redoubled efforts in the wake of the shocking events at Bondi Beach on December 14, 2025.

“My mother survived the Holocaust only because she was in hiding with a non-Jewish family,” Curtis said. “They were Upstanders. It is her story which I’ve inherited. It is her story that has become my narrative and my responsibility. And now tragically, after Bondi, Australia has its own narrative. I know you didn’t ask for it but now it’s your gig too.”

Curtis described Courage to Care as a professionally run organisation, overseen by a diverse and capable board, that delivers a free, age-appropriate school program drawing on the lessons of the Holocaust to show students what can happen when bystander behaviour and antisemitism are normalised.

“We want students coming away from our program knowing that such behaviours are lethal to society and distinctly abnormal,” he said. “Our program is delivered by our well-trained, tireless and expanding cohort of volunteers, including our few cherished Shoah survivors.

For over 25 years our volunteers have delivered Courage to Care’s message with a passion that knows no bounds. School by school, classroom by classroom, and as you’ve heard today, student by student.”

Established in 1998, Courage to Care NSW has now reached more than 200,000 Australians through its Upstander Programs, which combine Holocaust survivor testimony with facilitated workshops designed to combat bullying, racism, antisemitism and prejudice while building empathy and the confidence to intervene.