Tuesday is International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and estimates show fewer than 200,000 survivors are still alive worldwide more than 80 years later.
“I was one of the lucky ones,” said Sharon Pitluk Silver.
As a child in Poland, Pitluk Silver survived the Holocaust but lost her mother and father in 1942, as well as other relatives.
“My parents died on my first birthday, because that’s the day that the Germans invaded our village,” said Pitluk Silver.
Her uncle survived and moved her to Ohio, where he raised her. She still has the Star of David that the Nazis forced him and other Jews to wear as identification.
“If you were caught without wearing a star, you were immediately shot to death,” Pitluk Silver said.
She shares her story with visitors at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center.
“It’s so important for us to remember those warning signs, those lessons that we can take from Sharon’s story,” said Kelley Szany, Senior Vice President of Education and Exhibitions at the museum.
Szany says it’s important to never forget the survivors and the millions of people murdered by the Nazis.
“We have to remember it did happen to human beings and it happened not only to the Jewish community, but to the Polish community, LGBTQ community. Multitudes of people were persecuted and were murdered by the Nazis,” Szany said.
To prevent a future Holocaust, Pitluk Silver hopes more people speak up.
“The hate and honestly where we are in the world today scares the heck out of me,” said Pitluk Silver. “Resilience is important.”
The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center’s mission is ‘Remember the Past, Transform the Future.’ It opened in 1981 after survivors stood up to neo-Nazis wanting to march against Jews in Skokie.
“That really shows what a community can do when we rally behind an idea, when we rally behind a just cause, and then ultimately creating this incredible museum that, now for 40 plus years, has reached and educated really hundreds of thousands of individuals,” said Szany.
The Illinois Holocaust Museum’s current location is in River North, at 360 North State Street. The main museum in Skokie, located at 9603 Woods Drive, is expected to reopen this fall once renovations are finished.
Hence then, the article about holocaust remembrance day survivor in chicago remembers her murdered family was published today ( ) and is available on NBC Chicago ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Holocaust Remembrance Day: Survivor in Chicago remembers her murdered family )
Also on site :
- Valve will face that £656m UK lawsuit accusing them of overcharging Steam customers, as tribunal rules it can go ahead
- Mimi Rogers Turns 70 and Stuns on the Red Carpet Alongside Her Beautiful Lookalike Daughter
- Macy’s $27 Cubic Zirconia Halo Stud Earrings Have Shoppers Raving About the ‘Quality and Sparkle’