Use Your Words

Ursula Murden, a religious Lutheran, was persecuted for being an ethnic Jew during  the Holocaust. Despite her horrific journey, Ursula experienced many acts of kindness from Germans as well. Listen to our student Libby retell Ursula's story. Ultimately, Libby concludes, “we categorize Germany as the villain, but we have to remember not all of Germany is the villain, just the hateful people and Nazis”

The best summation of this episode comes from our student, Roman, who tells Steven's story in this episode: 

Steven Kende’s life is best described by this quote from Golden Son by Pierce Brown,  “All that we have is that shout into the wind - how we live. How we go. And how we stand before we fall.¨ During the Holocaust all Steven Kende had was that shout into the wind -- how he lived and stood before enormous adversity. Steven Kende survived four concentration camps, lost nine family members and gained only nightmares of the past during the Holocaust. When asked what he thinks the most important thing we should learn from the Holocaust Steven Kende simply said: “That we never do it again.”

This is the story of Agnes Heller, who survived the ghettoization and bombing of her hometown in Hungary from 1944-1945. Let our student Sophi's soft voice carry you through Agnes' experience during WWII. Like all Holocaust survivors, Agnes' story is unique, but carries a similar message to many of our other stories this season. Sophi says she learned the how hope can prevail, even in the toughest of times. And that the power of family is priceless. 

When Roger Loria was born in 1940, Belgium was invaded by the Nazi Germans. He was only three weeks old at the time. So, in 1940, his family decided to try and flee from Belgium. Escaping with Roger was his father, Wolf Loria, his mother, Dina Maisel, his Great uncle Hiem, and his great uncle’s children. Roger’s family felt as if they were refugees walking down the streets. There was no food, and travel was very difficult on the road away from the Germans. Sadly the escape attempt was unsuccessful. Roger’s family, along with others escaping Belgium were caught in-between British and German forces at Dunkirk. The Germans forced the refugees back to Belgium. Ultimately, Roger's family went into hiding to save him, allowing him to grow up to develop a successful treatment for cancer during his career as a medical scientist in the United States. This Roger's story. 

A patient woman sits in a grey padded chair and waits. Her name is Panina Leviatan. She was a studious girl when she was younger, and was a student when her world was shattered. Panina Leviatan would survive the Holocaust. In this episode, Gretchen recounts Panina's life as a student in Lithuania and her escape of the Jewish genocide in Europe by fleeing to Israel.

Born in Poland in 1924, Alan Zimm and his brother Sol, were the sole survivors of the Holocaust in their family. Through luck, calculated decisions and shere willpower, Alan made it through ghettos and a concentration work camp to ultimately be rescued by the English in 1945, one month prior to V-E Day. Our seventh grader, Matthew, provides a concise and compelling view of Alan Zimm's experience and determination during the Holocaust. Alan Zimm recently passed away after testing positive for COVID-19. This episode is dedicated to his life and memory.

Before Halina Zimm was separated from her family in the midst of the Holocaust, her father told her to never ever tell anyone she was Jewish. From that moment on Halina became Wanda Kazusek. Though Halina's new identity helped protect her from being murdered by the Nazis, Halina knew she would never see her family again. During the war, Halina used her fake identity to work as a maid for various German families, including officers in the German military. 

Solomon Zimm, Sol for short, is the brother of Alan Zimm (one of our other featured Holocaust survivors this season). Alan and Sol were the only members of their family to survive the Holocaust, and Sol's story is incredible. Sol was first captured in 1939 as part of the Polish army defending Hitler's invasion, and was put in a POW camp. Afterwards, the Nazis transferred Sol from concentration camp to concentration camp throughout the war, spending most of his time at the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau. There, every hair on his body was shaved; he got a number tattooed on his arm, and was dumped in a bath of lye to prevent the spread of lice. Seventh grader Grayson tells us that Sol's survival is nothing short of a miracle, and it is one that you have to hear to believe. 

In one of the most unique episodes of this season, our student Eila retells the story of Inga Asher. Born in Berlin, Germany in 1920, Inga and her family experienced the horrors of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, first hand. Her father's shop was destroyed, and the Jewish community in Berlin came under direct, violent threat. To save the family, Inga's father bought all of them tickets to a place as far away from Berlin as seemingly possible-- Shanghai, China. Inga and her family made the incredible journey to Shanghai, avoiding the worst of the Holocaust, but soon found themselves forcibly moved from their home into the Jewish ghetto of Shanghai. Inga's story shows the geographical reach of the Nazi's influence, the breadth of global anti-Semitism, and the power of the Jewish community.