,
Please visit our new Archives exhibit! From Idea to Impact - When the Florida legislature approved the creation of a 10th University, they never would have imagined the impact that Florida Gulf Coast University would have on the Southwest Florida community. Over the last two and a half decades, FGCU has grown rapidly. Much of that growth has been driven by the heart of the institution’s mission - students. In celebration of FGCU’s silver anniversary, the University Archives and Special Collections presents Wings Up: 25 Years of Student Life at FGCU.
Recognizing that student involvement is central to the campus experience and the university’s development, Wings Up illustrates the strides students at Florida Gulf Coast University have made over the last 25 years. We hope that in looking at the accomplishments and experiences of the university’s forty-four thousand graduates, current and future students will be able to see themselves as essential parts of FGCU's history in the making.
The Archives is open 9 am - 5 pm, Monday - Friday. We are located on the third floor of the library in room 322. If you have questions, please contact libarchives@fgcu.edu.
They Were Children: Rescue as Resistance will be on display in the University Archives and Special Collections located on the third floor of the Wilson G. Bradshaw Library from November 1, 2023, through March 31, 2024. The gallery will be open to the public Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
They Were Children: Rescue as Resistance brings the story of the Oeuvre de Secours Aux Enfants’ (OSE) harrowing rescue of Jewish children to Southwest Florida for the first time. Between 1933 and 1939, persecution against European Jews displaced millions. Countries around the world closed their borders and Jewish refugees struggled to find sanctuary. After Germany’s invasion of Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France, the deportation of Jewish people was rampant and finding safety was nearly impossible.
In response, the OSE created complex rescue networks to save Jewish children from deportation. The Circuit Garel was one such clandestine network. Forgers, educators, social workers, priests, nuns, farmers, and passeurs (smugglers) throughout France joined forces to secure the safe passage of Jewish children. The passage would prove to be emotionally, mentally, and physically harrowing as the passeurs and children scaled the Alps to escape the Third Reich.
Under threat of extermination, the survival of the children was the ultimate form of resistance against the oppressive force that sought to eliminate them. They Were Children: Rescue as Resistance celebrates courage, and what it means to embrace fear alongside the immutable need to take action against injustice. They Were Children shares a message of resilience, heroism, courage, and compassion. Their stories allow visitors to witness the bravery of ordinary citizens as they risked their lives to do the extraordinary. It is a tribute to the indelible strength of the human spirit.
For information about the exhibition contact libarchives@fgcu.edu.
Want to know more about the inspiration behind this exhibit? View the guide to explore the books, movies, and primary sources that brought this exhibition to you.