Holocaust Internship: Gabi Held

By in Holocaust

Meeting a Holocaust survivor was an experience that I will never be able to forget. There is only so much about the Holocaust that I was able to understand from textbooks and movies, but being able to shake the hand of a person who was able to live though and carry on after such a horrible experience was unforgettable. I was impressed at how willing Gabi Held, the survivor that I met, was to share his story. Bringing all those painful memories to the surface is a sort of bravery that I admire in the highest degree. When I first watched his video testimony I was able to see what a dynamic person he was, however getting to sit down and speak to him was a totally different experience. Watching the emotions change as he described his experiences put all the research in perspective for me.                 I was in charge of filming the classroom visits, rather than teaching, however...

Rachel Gottlieb

By in Holocaust

It was an absolute honor meeting the remarkable Holocaust survivors that this internship allowed me too. For me, I’ve been in the presence of many Holocaust survivors before, for my grandmother and her sister are Holocaust survivors themselves (along with many other family members). Because of this, I knew what to expect meeting other Holocaust survivors. However, even with my history of meeting Holocaust survivors, a wave of emotions always takes over. Through this internship, I had the opportunity to sit and meet with Rachel Gottlieb, a remarkable women whose spirit and energy is alive and well. Her positive attitude, smile, her constant reminder of how old she is, and how much she enjoys swimming impressed me from the start. It was refreshing to see her spirit so vibrant and smile so wide. However, as Leo Schuchert and I began interviewing Rachel, her smile began to slowly...

Arthur Spielman

By in Holocaust, Leadership

 Meeting Arthur Spielman was an honor. It was so special to be able to have be able to talk and get to know Arthur on a personal level. Spending time with him alone, I realized he was more than just a holocaust survivor, a naive misconception I had before meeting him. Mr. Spielman’s warm heart was what impressed me the most about him. From our first “hellos”, he was so kind, gentle, and caring. He showed a honest interest in my life and seemed so happy. Anytime we shared a conversation, the twinkle in his eye kept an ongoing infectious smile on face, an effect only a few important people have have made on my life. It was a pleasure getting to know him. Teaching young people about the Holocaust was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. It felt incredible being able to engage students on a topic as important as the Holocaust. The most rewarding aspect of the experience was...

Arthur Spielman

By in Holocaust

Posted by: Audriana Mekula-Hanson, Wagner College Holocaust Intern 2014 When it first hit me that I would be meeting a Holocaust survivor, I was both humbled and nervous. I thought, “This man’s story has played such a large role in history because every day he is a living testament to the atrocities of our past.” I would imagine that would be a large burden, knowing that you are left to carry not on your own story, but the stories of so many others. When I watched clips from his interview and realized he was spent time in both Slovakia and Hungary, I felt honored to meet him because I am a quarter Slovakian and a quarter Hungarian and I have never met anyone outside of my own family who shares that ethnic background. While my family is not Jewish and had emigrated before World War II, when I told Arthur about my lineage, I saw his eyes light up and I felt an instant connection between...

Honoring World War II Veterans

By in European Immigration, Holocaust

Staten Island in World War II WWII Veteran John Byrnes of Staten Island, New York discusses his dramatic and tragic experiences as a U.S. Navy Gunner in the Pacific Theater, notably the horror of the USS Franklin attack in the Battle of Okinawa. Interview with Lori Weintrob, Wagner College, March 2013 for the Staten Island Holocaust Commemoration and Honoring of WWII Veterans.