Exhibits at Lakewood Public Library

Besa, Muslims Who Saved Jews During The Holocaust

When post-World War II Europe found itself devastated by the loss of its Jewish population, Albania was the only country to boast a larger number of Jews than it had prior to the Holocaust. Over 2,000 Jews from Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Poland and Serbia were hidden in the homes of Albanian Muslim families during the war.

Norman Gershman, an American photographer fascinated with these stories, traveled to Albania and Kosovo to chronicle the tales of the righteous Albanians and their devotion to and dedicated practice of Besa, an Albanian Code of Honor. Besa means “to keep the promise” and is a fundamental guideline of life.

In Gershman’s meetings with Albanians, many of whom have been named Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem, each person referenced his or her Besa—faith, honor, a promise to act on beliefs—as the source of personal courage in rescuing Jews during the Holocaust. As Basri Hasani, a Righteous Albanian, said: “My door is always open to someone in need.” It is the Besa of the Albanian people that Gershman captures in his photographs.

Gershman’s portraits represent the depth of character of each narrator while also serving as a documentary of the Albanian Resistance. Each portrait, which often features an artifact relating to the narrative, is accompanied by a personal statement of the individual’s honorable and heroic act and relationship with the Jews who were hidden and protected.

Twenty-seven of Gershman’s photographs are on exhibit, and each photograph is numbered. Use this guide to read and learn more about each of these Albanian heroes.

Vietnam Series Events & Programs Guide

The stories and experiences of the Vietnamese Boat People speak directly to a people’s boundless courage, shared hope, and remarkable resilience. These stories and experiences are timeless—they are relevant now more than ever.

The Lakewood Public Library honors the Vietnamese Boat People by allowing their stories to be told and their experiences to be shared.

Through an exhibition and related programs involving literature, poetry, film, the study of faith traditions, art, and photography, we examine the lives and important stories of Vietnamese refugees, and we celebrate a people’s history and culture.

In exploring and celebrating a people’s humanities, we humanize a people and promote empathy and understanding.
The Lakewood Public Library is honored to exhibit a selection of photographs of Vietnamese Boat People taken by Les Bird, a former Commander of the Royal Hong Kong Marine Police.

These photographs, which were previously exhibited at the Chinese University in Hong Kong in 2021, and at the Wende Museum in Los Angeles in 2023, both anchor and center this programming, Vietnamese Refugees: Stories of Courage, Hope and Resilience.

Laura Ingalls Wilder and Ohio Pioneers

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home and Museum Exhibit contains photographs and information relating to Mrs. Wilder, her famous “Little House” books, and America’s westward expansion. The Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum is “where Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote her books.” This traveling tabletop exhibit is made available thanks to Missouri Humanities Council.

Ohio Pioneers is a traveling exhibit from Marietta College’s Legacy Library. The exhibit is inspired by the book, The Pioneers: The Heroic Story of the Settlers Who Brought the American Ideal West, by Pulitzer Prize winning author David McCullough. Included in the exhibit are reproductions of images from manuscripts, rare books, and artwork used by the late Pulitzer-Prize-winning author David McCullough in his recent bestseller as well as twelve colorful exhibit panels describing the history of Ohio’s early settlement by New Englanders following the American Revolution.

Ohio Women Vote: 100 Years of Change

The exhibit commemorated the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment and celebrates the century of women’s activism that followed. This traveling exhibit posed ten questions to historic and contemporary Ohio women in activism. Their answers help the viewer learn that the 19th Amendment was not the end of women’s activism, it was the beginning.

The Ohio Watercolor Society’s Competitive Juried Exhibition

The Ohio Watercolor Society’s competitive juried exhibition is a showcase for the talent, diversity and energy of artists working in water soluble mediums: watercolor, acrylic, casein, gouache and egg tempera. Awards of cash and materials totaling thousands of dollars makes this one of the premier art exhibits in the State of Ohio.

Remembering May 4th

The tragic events of May 4, 1970, had a profound impact on Kent State University, the nation and the world. In the ensuing years, Kent State’s learning community has honored the memories of Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer, and William Schroeder with an enduring dedication to scholarship that seeks to prevent violence and promote democratic values from public service to civil discourse.

Imagining a Better World: The Artwork of Nelly Toll

The Massillon Museum initiated a partnership with Nelly Toll in 2012 to help share her story through a traveling exhibition, which was produced with support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Toll had already been working for many years prior with filmmaker Diane Estelle Vicari on interpreting her childhood experience and the powerful messaging of hope present in her paintings through a documentary film vehicle. The Museum and Vicari continue to work together to ensure that, in the absence of Toll’s voice, her story continues to resonate.

Telling A People’s Story

This was the first major museum exhibition devoted to the art found within the pages of African-American children’s picture books. Many of the artworks featured in the exhibition received top honors and honorable mentions from several major literary organizations.

Art Interprets Alzheimer’s

The exhibit shared artist-couple Sue and George Roby’s journey through Alzheimer’s disease, using their unique tools: their profession and respective media and experience of the disease.

Greg Murray

We displayed select photos of canine heroes from Greg Murray’s book Pit Bull Heroes: 45 Underdogs with Resilience and Heart. Meet Chad, the first pit bull in the pet therapy program at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia; Apollo, who sniffs out narcotics at his job in Washington State; Charlie, who rallied a community to fight breed-specific legislation laws in Lakewood; and forty-six other underdogs. They are all pit bulls and heroes in their own way.

Traveling Stanzas: Immigrant Voices

Lakewood Public Library and the Friends of Lakewood Public Library were proud to partner with the Wick Poetry Center at Kent
State University to host Traveling Stanzas: Immigrant Voices, an
interactive exhibit including creative writing tools and activities. The exhibit acknowledged the unique experiences of immigrants in our community with a public display that prompted dialogue through the intimate and inclusive voice of poetry.