Introducing Eric Stillman, the new Florida Holocaust Museum CEO

As he prepares to relocate from Washington, D.C. to St. Petersburg, Eric Stillman is thinking about the challenges that await him as he becomes the new President and CEO of the Florida Holocaust Museum.

After undergoing a year of expansive renovations to make room for two new, key additions, the world-class museum will officially re-open in early September.

“It’s a fantastic time to be joining the museum,” said Stillman, whose first day is June 1. “I think that I will have a phenomenal opportunity, and I really do see this as something special and unique within my career.”

When the “new” Florida Holocaust Museum debuts, it will include the Elie Weisel Collection, a permanent exhibit of personal papers, artifacts and other materials belonging to the late Nobel Prize winning author and humanitarian.

And Thor, a 34-foot, 10-ton Danish fishing vessel that was used to smuggle Danish Jews to neutral Sweden during World War II, will be on permanent display.

During the interview process, Stillman said, he was given a hardhat tour of the museum under construction. “Being able to see Thor firsthand, and to see the substantial collection from Elie Wiesel, it gave me that goosebumps, tingling feeling – this is a very significant, pivotal time for the Florida Holocaust Museum. And it’s really exciting for me to be a part of this.”

An expanded Florida Holocaust Museum will open Sept. 9 in St. Petersburg.

Stillman served as the CEO of the Jewish Federation and Jewish Foundation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Broward County and Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans.

In addition, he held leadership roles at the Jewish Federation of Rhode Island, the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington and the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County.

He is president of D.C.-based Triovate Analytics, which collects qualitative and quantitative data on antisemitism in the United States, from governmental and nongovernmental sources. “We are able,” he explained, “to use mathematical modeling in order to create predictive analytics to chart the course of antisemitism occurrences in a particular location, or for a particular institution. And we make that available to organizations that are looking to address issues of antisemitism.”

The company is currently working closely with a community (which he declined to identify). “We expect that it’s going to be very helpful to them. And certainly time will tell.”

Amidst all the excitement and adrenaline of moving to a new city and beginning a new job, Stillman said, he remains mindful of the important role that institutions like the Florida Holocaust Museum play in all communities.

“To me, education – for the current generation and for future generations – is so essential,” he explained. “Because if we do not teach the lessons of the Holocaust, if we do not use Holocaust education as a teaching tool to combat antisemitism, then we run the very great risk that it will be forgotten.

“And that the last of the survivors, and even the second and third generation of their families, will not be able to help future generations, let alone our current generation, to understand the importance of these lessons.”

Along with making himself intimately familiar with the museum, its collections and its extensive educational resources, Stillman intends to become ingrained, as an advocate and a representative, in the bay area community.

“To me, getting to know the people in the community is really essential in order to be that representative – that voice – as a spokesperson for the museum, so that people are enticed and want to come to it,” he said. “To open their eyes and their ears and their minds to what they can gain, and learn.

“And for somebody who maybe has visited the museum in the past, before the renovations and the expansion, and before the addition of the Elie Wiesel Collection and Thor, it’s helping them to understand and appreciate that there’s a lot of good reasons to come back and see it all again.”

Stillman replaces Interim CEO Mike Igel, the museum board member who has led the organization for the past year. Igel will chair the newly-formed Elie Wiesel Collection Project Committee.

Florida Holocaust Museum website.