Hilton Family Holocaust Education Center Breaks Ground in Phoenix

Construction has begun on a three-story building in downtown Phoenix that will serve as the state’s first facility fully dedicated to Holocaust history. Located near the Burton Barr Library, the 31,000-square-foot structure is set to house the Hilton Family Holocaust Education Center. The project aims to address a gap in local instruction and provide a physical space for survivors and students to engage with the past.

Oskar Knoblauch, a 100-year-old survivor, visited the construction site to observe the work. Knoblauch’s family worked as slave laborers for the Gestapo headquarters in Krakow during World War II. His father was murdered eight months before liberation. Knoblauch is one of four survivors whose personal stories will be featured in the center’s exhibits. “A lot of people don’t know the real story, unless you were there. I was,” he said. He turns 101 in November.

The project shifted from a traditional museum concept to an education center in 2022. That change followed a 2021 Arizona law requiring students in grades 7 through 12 to study the Holocaust and other genocides. Project Chairman Steve Hilton stated that the team concluded the state was not doing a good job teaching the subject. Hilton’s father, Sam, survived five concentration camps. “We can’t change the world, but we can make a difference here in Arizona, for the school kids in Arizona,” Steve Hilton explained.

The center will feature six exhibits, including a room designed to look like a Jewish family dining room to introduce the history. Another floor will serve as an “Upstander Lab,” where visitors connect historical events to contemporary forces of antisemitism. Talli Dippold, the center’s president and CEO, noted that many studies indicate students benefit most from hearing directly from survivors. She cited a new Anti-Defamation League study showing that many young Americans struggle to recognize antisemitism online. Dippold described antisemitism as an indicator of a society’s health, noting that when it rises, other forms of hatred often follow.

Project leaders expect the center to welcome over 50,000 students and visitors annually once it opens. The facility is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2027. Knoblauch said seeing the building halfway done gives him hope that he will be present for the grand opening. He plans to continue sharing his story to fight antisemitism and intends to stay for the event.