Waterdown Museum of Hope is run and guided by students from the Grade 11 Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity Course from Waterdown District High School. Since our opening in fall 2013, we have hosted hundreds of students and community visitors. Originally housed at the high school, the museum had expanded to occupy three classrooms with over 1,200 artifacts. Important historical artifacts range from found missile shells, medals, letters and uniforms donated by war veterans, to carefully collected artifacts from the Holocaust such as survivors’ stars and hate propaganda currency from the Third Reich.

The museum’s relocation to the Waterdown Legion in November 2023 marks a new chapter in our journey. This move continues our vision of creating a space that inspires and empowers future generations. By preserving and sharing stories, we aim to ignite hope, foster understanding, and promote positive change.

“This is the authentic learning that should happen every year with history.“

Rob Flosman, WDHS Teacher and Founder of Waterdown Museum of Hope

The museum is a way to reflect history and the way it impacts our community today. History is placed into the hands of students, and they become engaged on a community level. Students are immersed in a study of their own family history and they learn the connections between history with identity, they study the morality of choices individuals made, they ask complex questions, and encounter personal testimonies from some of humanity’s darkest moments.

Visit us at our new location at the Waterdown Legion!