Jane Haining, a missionary for the Church of Scotland from Dumfriesshire, was working as a school matron in Budapest in the 1930s when war broke out and the Nazis swept through Hungary. She was ordered home by her employers, but she refused to leave her pupils and continued to provide love and protection to all her charges, Jewish and Christian alike. She was denounced to the Nazis and later died at Auschwitz.

Now her story will be shared with young people today thanks to grants from the Pollok Foundation and the Association of Jewish Refugees.

The chair of the Jane Haining Committee, part of the West of Scotland Branch of the Council of Christians and Jews, Professor Anne Anderson said: “We are delighted we will be able to share the story of Jane Haining with pupils.  We also want to work with teachers and future teachers to draw out the lessons for today’s challenges of antisemitism and other forms of racism.”

“The project will work with the University of Glasgow so that tomorrow’s teachers are equipped to share this inspiring story and pupils are encouraged to see the dangers of treating people as ‘other’.”

Jane Haining was added to the Calendar by the General Synod of the Scottish Episcopal Church in 2021.  Her life and work is celebrated on 17 July, the anniversary of her death in 1944.

For more information about the Jane Haining Project contact james.roberts@ccj.org.uk

To support the project see https://ccj.org.uk/janehainingproject