News
A selection of news from the Pamätaj civic association. Find more on the Facebook page of the Jewish cemetery in Namestovo.
13 July 2026
This is how the cooperation between the Horná Orava Protected Landscape Area and the Pamätaj civic association should look – and does look.
28 May 2026
Interesting observations, visits, and memories with room for reminiscence. The mowing of the past days gives this place a completely different dimension for reflection.
23 March 2026
The eastern side of the symbolic fencing at the Jewish cemetery in Námestovo has been repaired. Our thanks go to everyone who helped.
16 February 2026
Genealogy, or searching for roots?
Tracing one's family history is more popular than ever. Every visit for this purpose, whether from Slovakia or from abroad, shows that Pamätaj's work is meaningful – those who find their relatives, or at least gain hope, give us a good feeling about the work done.
Dr. Avior Byron and his daughter Daniela found their relatives at the cemetery in Podwilk, Poland. They continued in Námestovo, so far without success – the book of the dead and buried for the Námestovo region burned down with many other important documents during World War II. Dr. Byron plans to search for more information in the Yad Vashem archives in Israel. He was also interested in the digitization of the Jewish cemetery in Námestovo – the first part is already available on this website.
11 February 2026
Lecture at the Anton Bernolák Grammar School in Námestovo.
The opening piece for two violins, "Dona, dona", was performed by Ľubka Puchelová and Patrícia Nešťáková – a song about a calf led to slaughter, symbolising the people of Israel quietly led to their death.
The opening lecture was given by Richard Duda, president of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Slovakia. The discussion was also joined by Lucyna Borczuch from Poland, who cares for Jewish monuments of Polish Orava and last year restored the cemetery in Podwilk, and by Dr. Avior Byron from Israel, who shared how family history, academic research and the power of words interweave.
22 December 2025
A new re-edition of the publication for Christmas. A gift from loved ones that certainly brought joy.
22 December 2025
Jewish genealogy and history in our region is gaining a new dimension. CEJHG is being founded – the first platform of its kind, led by figures such as Randy Schoenberg and Michael Miller. We are pleased that Slovakia is represented by Pamätaj member Mgr. Lucia Zuštiaková. It opens doors for members to first-class historical sources, an international network of researchers and new friendships.
22 December 2025
I believe the restoration of the Jewish cemetery in Námestovo has found its followers in other parts of Slovakia as well. My friend Hero Richter, who does similar work in Levoča, asked us to share his fundraiser for the restoration of the Jewish cemetery in Levoča.
12 August 2025
When you open the website of the Jewish cemetery in Námestovo, you will see an image from an online camera, updated every 10 minutes. This allows you to watch, in real time, what is happening at the cemetery on the shore of the Orava dam.
16 June 2025
A few sentences from the lecture of Dr. Tomáš Kraus in Námestovo, 12 June 2025.
"Námestovo. I never lived there; until recently I knew no one here. Then one day an unknown voice called me. It entered my life, and I am glad it did. You have a valuable man in Námestovo. His name is Mr. Kurtulík. Thanks to him, a small memorial to the Kraus family lies in the centre of Námestovo..."
"...I counted that I lost three grandparents, six aunts and uncles, and some ten cousins. Numbers. People became numbers. Only standing before the Námestovo memorial, reading that among them were two-year-old and six-year-old children who share my DNA, did I begin to tremble... With this contribution I only wanted to give the people of Námestovo back their fellow citizens as human beings. Empty chairs in family homes speak for themselves."
13 June 2025
"What Happened in Námestovo…" – lecture series, 12 June 2025.
As part of a lecture series organised by Pamätaj in cooperation with professors Alena Ščigulinská and Marcela Wiliams of the Anton Bernolák Grammar School, several remarkable moments were presented. The event began with John Williams's Schindler's List arranged for two violins, performed by Ľubomíra Puchelová and Adrián Malovaník.
The first speaker was Yohanan Friedman, a native of Zákamenné and professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, with his reflections "My Slovak Fairytale" – delivered in remarkable Slovak. Professor Michael Pinto-Duschinsky from England, great-grandson of the Námestovo rabbi, followed with "Memory, Hope and Youth at a Time of World Crisis". The second part featured Tomáš Kraus, longtime journalist and writer, whose family has a memorial in Námestovo. The final speaker was Richard Duda, President of the Federation of Jewish Communities in Slovakia. The event was also filmed by TV LUX.
20 May 2025
Invitation to the unveiling of the memorial in Podwilk.
As part of the Polish project "Ludzie, nie liczby" (People, Not Numbers) led by Dariusz Popiela, a memorial to the Jews of Upper Orava – victims of the Shoah of 1942 – was unveiled at the Jewish cemetery in Podwilk on 28 May 2025. The monument, shaped as the Tablets of the Law with a broken Star of David, bears the names of victims from the Upper Orava villages – Jabłonka, Piekielnik, Podsarnie, Podszkle, Lipnica Wielka, Orawka and Podwilk – and a quotation from the Book of Job: "O earth, cover not my blood..."
Pamätaj helped the initiative compile the list of victims' names and took part in the ceremony. In its public acknowledgements, the project thanked Karol Kurtulík and historian Lucyna Borczuch for their years of work for the memory of Orava's Jews. Organisers: the Dariusz Popiela Centrum Foundation and Ledor Wador.
Photos: Ludzie, Nie Liczby / Dariusz Popiela Centrum Foundation
4 December 2024
After his visit to Námestovo, Dr. Michael Pinto-Duschinsky published an article in The Jewish Chronicle about his impressions of Slovakia and the Jewish cemetery in Námestovo.
10 September 2024
We are starting – please accept the invitation... The exhibition They Lived Among Us III in the Cultural House in Námestovo.
7 June 2024
As part of project-based learning, selected first and second-year students of the Anton Bernolák Grammar School, guided by professor PaedDr. Alena Ščigulinská, decided to explore the Holocaust period more deeply. They studied the Jewish cemetery in Námestovo, damaged by unknown vandals in December 2019, and the meaning and function of the Stolpersteine. Pamätaj chairman Ing. Karol Kurtulík provided them with information during an interview.
27 May 2024
The previous regime allowed and showed us the possibility of building even on cemeteries. That is the sad part. Even sadder is when you need to expand your garden next to your cottage – you simply bulldoze the tombstones out of the way. Here the sad story ends. A few days ago two large trees fell on the monuments in the cemetery – and during their removal, new stones were discovered. Excellent...
22 March 2024
Yesterday's work brigade at the Jewish cemetery, directed by Zuzana and Šimon Kertýs, was exceptional. Children from the after-school club of the Komenského Elementary School (years 2–4) cleaned the cemetery to the last twig with their initiative and enormous liveliness. The children asked questions about the Jewish community in Námestovo, their language, their lives, and the need to talk about them. Most gratifying was their last question – whether they can come again next year.
11 March 2024
I don't remember such a high water level after winter. Only one thing follows from this – cleaning and re-erecting the fallen, as every year. Take a walk and each carry away your own branch...
9 August 2023
The installation of the Stolperstein for the last rabbi of Námestovo, Jozef Reich, is in preparation. Thanks to Boris Barak Selinger for the prompt delivery.
