As we are the last generation to hear from living witnesses of the Holocaust, museums like MHM face a profound responsibility: how do we continue to bear witness in a world where there are no living eyewitnesses? For siblings and volunteers John Deane and Leanne Issko, the answer lies in memory, legacy, and a deeply personal commitment to carrying the truth forward.
For John and Leanne, their connection to MHM is deeply personal. As children, they did not fully know their father’s Holocaust story, as he revealed his Holocaust story to the family only later in life. Their father, Wolf Deane, has been involved with MHM for almost 30 years, and for John, continuing that involvement felt incumbent, both as an act of respect and as a way of honouring the legacy his father began. It was something to carry on in the family name. For the last 22 years John has been a part of the team organising the annual commemoration of the Łódź Ghetto liquidation,. In the last year, John expanded his volunteer work with us by beginning to volunteer in our Visitor Experience team, assisting the public and facilitating exhibitions.
For Leanne, volunteering at MHM is both a return and a continuation. She first volunteered in the library more than 25 years ago. Now, as she enters retirement, she has chosen to return to the museum as a charity she deeply values and wants to remain involved with. “It’s always something I wanted to do, contributing to the Holocaust museum” she says, seeing her volunteer work as an act of continuity and commitment to a cause that has shaped her family’s identity. Her long-standing connection reflects a quiet but powerful truth: preserving memory is not a single act, but a lifelong commitment.
Their most memorable moments reflect how memory connects people beyond heritage. Leanne recalls about being struck when non-Jewish visitors come to the centre and share why they felt compelled to visit. That people would take time out of their lives to engage with Holocaust history continues to surprise and move her. For John, our most recent exhibition, Portraits of Survival stands out. Being able to tell visitors that his father’s portrait was one of the sixteen displayed, and to expand on his story, experiences, and survival filled him with pride and reinforced the importance of personal storytelling within the museum space.
As the next generation, John and Leanne recognise their responsibility. The museum’s recorded testimonies now form the backbone of Holocaust education in a post-eyewitness world. Their role is to carry the truth forward, adding a personal touch where possible, grounding exhibitions in lived experience, and passing the story on, again and again. In doing so, they help ensure that memory remains not just preserved, but alive.
