Spring Break
Column: Holocaust Remembrance Day personal for columnist
Hillary Brady
Issue date: 4/21/09 Section: Editorial/Opinion
04/21/09 - Whether it's through reading about it in a textbook, flipping through Anne Frank's diary or seeing "Schindler's List", the Holocaust is a subject that is familiar to many.
But for me, Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is today, has taken on a whole new meaning, all thanks to one man and an old clothes hanger.
My senior year of high school, I was part of a program, the Second Generation Holocaust Fund, which helped chronicle the experiences of Holocaust survivors. We kicked off the extensive, year-long project with a trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C.
Our group visited the museum with some of the survivors, who had volunteered to spend the afternoon supplementing our museum tour with their own stories of survival. Together, we saw the evidence and history of hatred, sealed behind neatly-organized glass exhibits and labeled with typed placards.
I spent that afternoon with Bernie, a tall, elderly man, who spoke with a heavy accent and walked with a cane. His wife, a sweet, petite blonde and retired school-teacher, trailed behind us.
His reminiscence was engaging, whip-smart and witty. He had a strong sense of humor and a penchant for chatter. As we strolled through the exhibits, he shared with me a life story that was powerful to behold.
Bernie, a survivor of Auschwitz, lost the majority of his family during the Holocaust. He remained a working prisoner in the notorious death camp until the end of the war. The Nazis, sensing the Allied forces approaching, forced Bernie, his brother and the other 60,000 individuals enslaved in the barbed wire fences, on a death march toward other western camps. It was on this march that his brother died, killed by a Nazi officer for walking too slowly.
Bernie shared these stories with the power and passion of a practiced orator. The details were never too gritty, and he never shied away from speaking of his family's death. He adamantly wanted his message to be heard and he was more than willing to make it happen.
But for me, Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is today, has taken on a whole new meaning, all thanks to one man and an old clothes hanger.
My senior year of high school, I was part of a program, the Second Generation Holocaust Fund, which helped chronicle the experiences of Holocaust survivors. We kicked off the extensive, year-long project with a trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C.
Our group visited the museum with some of the survivors, who had volunteered to spend the afternoon supplementing our museum tour with their own stories of survival. Together, we saw the evidence and history of hatred, sealed behind neatly-organized glass exhibits and labeled with typed placards.
I spent that afternoon with Bernie, a tall, elderly man, who spoke with a heavy accent and walked with a cane. His wife, a sweet, petite blonde and retired school-teacher, trailed behind us.
His reminiscence was engaging, whip-smart and witty. He had a strong sense of humor and a penchant for chatter. As we strolled through the exhibits, he shared with me a life story that was powerful to behold.
Bernie, a survivor of Auschwitz, lost the majority of his family during the Holocaust. He remained a working prisoner in the notorious death camp until the end of the war. The Nazis, sensing the Allied forces approaching, forced Bernie, his brother and the other 60,000 individuals enslaved in the barbed wire fences, on a death march toward other western camps. It was on this march that his brother died, killed by a Nazi officer for walking too slowly.
Bernie shared these stories with the power and passion of a practiced orator. The details were never too gritty, and he never shied away from speaking of his family's death. He adamantly wanted his message to be heard and he was more than willing to make it happen.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Elizabeth Herron
posted 4/21/09 @ 10:05 AM EST
Ms Brady - this was an extraordinarily well written and thoughtful letter! The realization that in this era of apparent complete self-absorption demonstrated by so many college and high school through their relentless focus on technology and the need to Twitter every minute of their mundane life, that there are still some who are aware of and concerned for those much less fortunate. (Continued…)
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