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Ep 554: Inheriting Memory with Rebecca Sparacio and Guest Alex Teplish, Part 1 on hmTv

In this powerful episode of Inheriting Memory, host Rebecca Sparacio speaks with Alex Teplish about growing up as a third-generation Holocaust survivor in a Russian-speaking Jewish family from Odessa, Ukraine.

Alex shares how his grandparents’ survival stories were woven into everyday family life, not through formal testimony at the dinner table, but through moments, memories, and fragments that helped shape his understanding of history, identity, resilience, and responsibility.

He reflects on his close relationship with his grandparents, their humor, their love of family, and their ability to celebrate life despite the unimaginable trauma they endured. Alex also recounts the harrowing story of his grandfather Aaron and grandmother Genya during the Holocaust, including their forced displacement from Odessa, the role of Romanian forces and local collaborators, life in ghettos and camps, the loss of family members, and the difficult return to a city where antisemitism still remained.

This conversation explores what it means to inherit memory, how trauma and resilience pass through generations, and why personal testimony remains essential in preserving Holocaust history.

Inheriting Memory is a production of the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County on hmTv.

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