Rena's Promise is a promise to create a more ecumenical world unhindered by prejudice, racism and hatred.

Created to further the vision of Holocaust survivor Rena Kornreich Gelissen and in honor of her memory, we began our mission by bringing young people together from all walks of life in order to provide them with a safe place to develop cultural and creative voices of Generation NEXT. For five years, we ran a creative writing camp for teens at risk. The successes of that camp included helping a homeless teen finish high school, a gunshot victim pay for college (she is now teaching English in South Korea), a South African teen with cerebral palsy just finished his PhD in the linguistics of racism, a young woman struggling with depression became a published poet, and another became a musician and songwriter.

In 2016, our vision expanded. Inspired by the unknown history of the first young women sent to Auschwitz, founder and historian, Heather Dune Macadam, felt we could reach more people if we used three creative elements: cinematic, literary, and interactive conversations. Producing and directing a film based on her literary work took ten years, but in 2024 the film "999: The Forgotten Girls" was released and has screened all over the world in festivals, theatres, museums, schools, and conferences; talkbacks address issues of human rights, peaceful and creative resolutions, and finding commonalities instead of differences among people. These conversations often cover sisterhood, women and girl's rights, courage and compassion. Educational curriculum helps teachers build conversations that bring thought-provoking experiences to their students. Additional outreach also includes community and religious organizations.

We are a small organization with a big vision. Despite limited resources, we have successfully created a film that speaks to people's hearts and brings a message of peace and resilience. In the past nine months, our founder and lead presenter, Heather Dune, has traveled extensively in America, speaking to educators in Florida and Texas, students in New York and North Carolina, and speaking in Israel and India. In Slovakia, just a few miles from Ukraine, she met with refugees and a young LGBTQ student afraid of the rise of fascism in his country.

At Rena's Promise, helping young people find meaning and purpose is how we practice Tikkun Olam and "repair the world" one child at a time.