I Placed Photographs Of My Family Throughout Auschwitz, To Document The Life Of 4 Generations Since My Grandmother Survived The Camp
My grandmother, Miriam Sharir, was a survivor of the Auschwitz death camp. 1.1 million people were brutally murdered in this place of horror. Only 7500 survived by the time it was liberated on January 27th 1945.
Her unbelievable strength is what got her out of there. The fate of 9 other family members who were also deported to that camp was never to make it out alive.
I grew up by her side, always close by. During my teenage years, she gradually began to share with us some of her horrific experiences, as well as her incredibly heroic moments in the camp.
She never wanted me to go there. She didn’t think I had any reason to.
It has been a little over a decade now since she left us. Since then, I’ve been watching my nieces and nephews, 4th generation since the Holocaust, grow up and I found my reason.
Only two of them had the privilege to be around her in her lifetime, until they were 6 years old. I couldn’t help but wonder, how will they all remember what happened in the Holocaust? How will they pass it on?
They’ve never heard a thing from the woman who had been there; they never lived through the implications. I realized that I, as a 3rd generation, was the last link between those who experienced the horrors, and the future generation who only hear the stories.
Last year I went to the death camp, and documented the life of 4 generations since my grandmother’s survival. I gathered my family’s photos and scattered them in frames throughout the camp.
Scenes of a Jewish wedding, a Bar-Mitzvah or lighting of the candles in Hanukkah, were all that the Nazi’s sought to exterminate – and in that very place there would now be a proof to how they failed.
There was a storm that day. It was bitter cold, the winds were high and the rain was pouring with only moment’s break of a deceiving sun. The frames got wet and repeatedly kept falling, as did I. It was a physical and emotional struggle. But I kept thinking that nothing can even begin to compare to the struggle my grandmother went through in that place.
Although it’s very personal, I decided to put out this series of photos so that more people can learn the importance of never forgetting what happened just 73 years ago. January 27th also marks The International Holocaust Remembrance Day; on the date Auschwitz was liberated by the Red Army. I wish this day was commemorated by everyone, everywhere. We must all know that if we forget the past, the future can never be guaranteed.
Dedicated to my grandmother, her family members who were murdered in Auschwitz and the 6 million Jews exterminated during the Holocaust who did not live on to see their next generations.
More info: noamchen.com
Generations of survival: My grandmother (left) with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th generations
Three years since this project, and I feel absolutely the same about how important it was. The farther we get from WWII era, the more we see people trying to rewrite history and deny that the Holocaust ever occurred, while at the same time we lose more and more Holocaust survivors that still live among us. The younger generation needs constant reminders as to what happened during the darkest time in history.
The memory of the tragic events is even more valued and important today than before. Nowadays we see an alarming rise in antisemitism around the world once again, and when remembering the past, one can never underestimate the consequences that can follow.
Our Triumph: 2nd, 3rd and 4th generations to the Holocaust
My grandmother’s wedding after surviving Auschwitz
I have only good memories of my grandma. She was the most loving, caring person who would do everything for us. Unfortunately, she only began to speak about her experiences later in life, so I was fortunate enough to hear only a few stories. During most of her life she did not talk about it, and we did not want to ask so that she wouldn’t get emotional or sick. The pain she carried with her was beyond anything you and I can imagine.
My mother, 2nd generation, on her wedding day
My uncle, 2nd generation, on his wedding day
My grandmother with her son and daughter, the 2nd generation
My Bar-Mitzvah ceramony (3rd generation)
My sister, 3rd generation, on her wedding day
My cousin, 3rd generation, on her wedding day
My cousin’s family, 3rd and 4th generations, light the Menorah in Hanukkah
My grandmother with her great-grandson (4th generation)
My mother (2nd generation) and us (3rd generation)
My brother’s family, 3rd and 4th generations
My cousin’s family, 3rd and 4th generation
My cousin and her daughter, 3rd and 4th generation
My grandmother with her newborn 4th generation
My nieces and nephews, 4th generation
Today I work as a full-time photographer in Israel, and I try my best to advocate for my country and my people. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of hatred towards Israel, which in my eyes is just another form of antisemitism, so I’m doing what I can to educate people about our history and our reality which oftentimes is being distorted on social and mainstream media.
Like most people, my family and I have also been somewhat affected by the pandemic, whether it’s financially or knowing people who got sick or even lost their lives to the virus. We hope to see an end to this pandemic as soon as possible before more lives are lost.
My grandmother, in the only photo of her’s I ever took before she passed away
Most people react very positively to this project, stating that they get very emotional reading and seeing the pictures. Some shared their own family history, which is very heartwarming. I was afraid that more people would find it offensive towards the Jews who did not survive the Holocaust to see a family of their own, but was glad to realize that everyone understands it’s just as much in those people’s honor.
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You did an amazing job of showing the happiness of life moving on against a backdrop of darkness, clouds and hate. I loved seeing your pictures of your family and all of the generations that have come since that terrible time. Never forget and bless your heart!
Thank you Patricia for your kind words. I appreciate it ❤️
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We should #NeverForget the #Holocoust, I´m German and belong to a completely other generation, have been born in 1971, I´m an absolute anti-fascist and anti-racist, we´re all God´s children, no matter what nationality, what ethnical origin, what religion, what colour of skin or what sexual direction we may have, we´re all God´s children and he loves us all, only doesn´t love the animal abusers, the child molesters, the rapists and other criminals!!!
Agreed. Thank you Marion, I'm very happy to hear your perspective.
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Thank you so much for sharing this, Noam. My great great grandparents were German Jews and I have spent many many years studying Holocaust history. My fear is what happens when there are no survivors left to tell these stories? We must never, never forget the atrocities committed against the Jews, the gay people, the disabled people, and all of the others killed in the camps. Please educate the children so that these people's spirits may live on!!
Most definitely. That's the main reason behind this project. Thank you so much.
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When I visited the city of Dachau, (then) W. Germany, we visited a museum detailing the Celtic history of the city. Settled by Celts, the city has been continuously lived in for more than 2,000 years. With this in my heart, we then visited the infamous Dachau concentration camp. While viewing the evidence and proof of human depravity, I kept in mind that Survivors live to pass on their strength, resilience, humor, wisdom and culture to generations of descendants.
Very true. I can tell you that as a 3rd generation I feel that even I inherited a few of my grandmother's unique qualities.
Load More Replies... I'm blown away, this is such a beautiful tribute....We can never forget. Blessings to your family.
My father was in aushwitz, birkenau, melk, mauthausen and ebensee. I wish I could’ve done what you did for him. It would’ve helped him work out some of his suffering.Thank you. Your a brilliant photographer
Thank you so much Barbara, I appreciate you 🙏🏻
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Did you leave the photo frames there? This is a beautiful testimony to life and the resilience of the human spirit. Your grandmother's strength made it possible for all these beautiful lives to exist. It's sad to think of the generation cut off from those who did not survive. It's important to remember this evil and fight those who desire to repeat it. Thanks for sharing.
I loved seeing the family photos, especially your grandmother's. All such strong, beautiful people. It's so important to remember what generations before have gone through so that we can have a happier life today. Very moving work. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for your lovely feedback. Super important to remember and pass it on..
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This is very beautiful and haunting. The themes of triumph and resilience despite so many atrocious horrors is my favourite part. Your only picture of your grandmother is very wonderful. Seeing the pictures moved me to tears and I'm very sorry for what your family had to go through. One of my grandfathers was a Nazi and there's not one day where I go by without thinking about the Holocaust. The Nazis were pure evil and what happened should never be forgotten so that history never repeats itself. Thank you for sharing something so personal and powerful.
Thank you, this means a lot, taking in mind your own family history. I'm sure the subject occupies your mind just as much. We all must remember what happened and pass it on to the next generation as for them this would already be too far down the pages of history. Thank you for sharing your thoughts here as well.
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Thank you so much for sharing your strength , your talent and yes a story that we HAVE TO NEVER FORGET . My mother grew up in France where , she was teenager at the time , their house , a farm with a big wood lot , was requisitioned by the Germans . They had to feed them , take care of them , they would hide their weapons in the woods .....and at the same time , she was doing undercover work for the French army , sending messages , carrying boxes of ammunitions to blow up bridges .....I wish she could have share more ...she refused ..... Oh why the ego of humanity can bring so much pain and destruction upon itself ????? Why the need to be “right” , to impose our truth to other , to annihilate the soul of another ?????? May we be peaceful , and may I place my hand in yours so together we can do what I cannot do alone .
Thank you Nancy. We always wish they would have shared much more, don't we? Let's do this together, totally ❤️
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This is powerful and beautiful. I loved seeing her wedding photos, right there in that place, as if to make a stand so incredible that after what they did to her and millions of others, she still came out and became a beautiful bride and eventually great-grandmother! Thank you for sharing this, its incredible.
Thank you for your beautiful words Mina. I appreciate it.
Load More Replies... What an absolutely fantastic way to show what Auschwitz was. This is really inspired - it shows the horror of what was taken, as well as the triumph over hate by those who survived. This is the only series of Auschwitz photos that I've ever been completely comfortable viewing. It doesn't seem like a place that should be photographed, to me, but this series is a celebration of the survivors.
Thank you Beth, I'm happy to hear that. You know during the war the Nazi's made a "photo album" of Auschwitz, their sick way of documenting the factory of death. To me, this is the survivors' version of a photo album from Auschwitz.
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We must never forget. Human atrocities happen everyday. I'm glad that this site has been preserved. They could have just torn it down and built over it. I'm so glad you were able to visit and carry out this project, and I thank you for sharing it. God surely blessed your grandmother.
I am so sorry you all had to live through this all. . And so glad some of you survived. And i am sorry i just cannot bear to look at the horrible place., And praying always ( i d k to whom ) humans can get some wisdom and compassion so this never ever happens again.
This is a great project idea, Noam. Thank you for sharing it with the rest of us. My husband's parents were both also Auschwitz survivors. It is something that we talk about almost everyday. So few (Jewish and non-Jewish) people realize that Anti-Semitism is still alive and well today--all over the Middle East and Europe, and it has infected the United Nations for decades. There are tens of millions of people in the world who still teach their children that killing Jews is a desirable thing, passing on the world's oldest hatred to yet another generation.
Very true Lyone, hatred and anti-semitism are very much alive all over the world, in different shapes and forms. That's why it's so important to commemorate this International Remembrance Day, talk about it and make sure people learn from history. I do hope your husband's parents are both alive and well, and that you cherish this precious time of being around them.
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Amazing photo project. I loved seeing the joy of your family and faith in all the pictures. Beautifully done. <3
Wow. This literally took my breath away. I wasn't going to post a comment just because I never do... but it's made a lasting impact on my emotions. The fact that you had this project in your mind and actually set out and accomplished it is so meaningful and impactful for your family, but for many others as well. The whole project is raw and candid and has a whole multi generational story. You created something your family will cherish forever as they continue to grow and multiply. Knowledge of their roots. Just amazing. Thanks for sharing :]
Thank you so much Alyssa. Appreciate your comment very much 🙏🏻
Load More Replies... Wow. This literally took my breath away. I wasn't going to post because I never do... but this was just emotionally brave. The idea of doing this and making it happen so beautifully is awe inspiring. Such a touching and raw way to show your future generations where they came from.
Beautiful ❤️ thank you and hahah take that 😝 my grandfather also survived, we are romani not Jewish though. I love seeing post like this, we all came through and we lived on and that is history, I love that everything they (the bad guys) stood for fell apart and we live on and on ❤️ Stronger and better but always remembering ❤️
I'm glad your family prosped after all that living nightmare. You deserve all the happiness the world has to offer. I'd like to inform you as of lately my nephue came home from school and I asked him about world war 2 and the hollacoust. Their teaching him in school that the camps and what happened to the Jewish people never happened. I told him to go to the public libarey and check himself. He came home horrified. He could not believe what they told him in school. But worst yet was the realality of reading and seeing the horrable things that were done to his fellow man. It's something that has changed his life. Please check and see if your schools are teaching student's the real history of the world not the water down version.
Thank you Walter. Where are you located in the world? Hearing that his school teaches them that this never happened is horrifying.
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We should never forget what happened there, so history won't repeat itself. I'm glad your grandmother survived and lived a long good life. Beautiful tribute.
Thank you, bless you for this. It is one of the most moving presentations about the Holocaust that I have ever seen. Beginning with the train tracks that delivered millions of people into hell. A picture of your beautiful family who exists because your great grandmother survived. But also, families just like yours, in their own pictures, at your ages, getting married, Bar Mitzvahs, Hanukkah, babies being born, living their lives just like your family has done, they arrived on that train with her. Walking through that gate, a picture of a family not possible except for her strength to survive and not being pulled out of line during the morning count. What you have put together is a photographic evidence for hope, but only if we remember what people are capable of. I dread the day when the last survivor has passed. We all owe a debt of responsibility to all of them to never let the knowledge of what happened to them there and in all the other camps die along with them.
I’m truly touched by what you said, thank you. You’re absolutely correct, we must always always remember.
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How many people would there have been in the generations that were never born?
This was truly moving, and made me cry a bit - sadness for all the suffering endured, and happiness that this lovely woman was able to not only escape this terrible place, but thrive and live a full, beautiful life. Thank you so very much for sharing a part of your history.
This is beautiful. This event should never ever be forgotten. Even in the centuries and millennia to come. Every year I always go to the Imperial War Museum in London , as they have a very thought provoking permanent exhibition of The Holocaust. Just to remind me and to re-educate myself as to what happened. We should never forget.
I wish more people would do the same as you, Chewie.
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What a fantastic way to memorialize your family. A giant f••k you to those evil people. You tried to break their spirits but you only made them stronger. When I was 13 I went to Dachau. I remember crying asking my mom how could people not know! There were neighborhoods right there. They had to have known. 33 years later and I remember her saying "denial is a powerful thing. They didn't want to end up there too." The bunk houses were the same in these photos. I remember thinking there was no way people could be made to live like that. Well, I'm older now and understand the evil of those people more. The fact that they have walked among us in my lifetime boils my blood.
Trust me, most if not all of them knew. Some cooperated with the Nazis as we all know. But yes, ultimately they lost.
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What an amazing tribute. Not only did your grandmother survive, she thrived. And isn't that the best revenge, they say? Living well? She must have been an incredible woman. How to make it out of that horror with any sanity left boggles the mind.
Thank you. It takes a super power if you ask me.
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Brilliant project. I am also a 3rd generation as my grandmother survived the Holocaust. Luckily she was 19 years old and extremely physically and mentally fit so she was sent to a concentration camp to work where she spent her days producing flax material for the Nazis to use instead of just murdering her. My great-grandparents and their 2 youngest children were sent straight to Auschwitz while other relatives were just murdered in the village massacre when the trains were full. Only my grandmother and her brother survived the Holocaust.
Thank you for sharing, Jonathan. Thank God we're here to keep their legacy alive.
Load More Replies... Wow this is a really beautiful idea. Unbelievable how many future generations have been wiped out by this atrocious Genocide. I am German, too. And I agree with Marion. We are all different and that's why we are beautiful and it makes life interesting. We should learn from another, not hate each other. I too think that you should carry on, educating people, because there won't be any Survivors left soon. Only their descendants.
this must never be forgotten thank you for the memories, we live in a world of so much that we are inclined to forget how we got it and who suffered for it. no matter where we are or who we are this did happen and our hearts need to remember those lovely souls who are no more, but not forgotten
Those photos really moved me. I'm really ashamed of decisions and the message that the present majority in the polish government is sending to the world, these last couple of days. I'm polish and they don't speak in my name or in the name of any of my friends or family. Beautiful project, thank you for sharing.
Thank you. I have to agree that the news coming from Poland in the last few days are very disturbing. Thank you for speaking out against it and for your kind words.
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It's so beautiful to see what satan/hitler planned failed. Your family is a wonderful testimony to there is always a remenant.
Szama, it's simple - if we forget, we allow this to happen again. 6 million Jews were systematically exterminated, you can"t just say "forget about it". If you do, this would quickly be repeated and possibly with any "undesirable" group. We MUST all remember and commemorate for future generations.
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“Her unbelievable strength is what got her out of there.” So you are saying that the people who dies there died because they were weak.
After scrolling through all the pics my colleague said "hmm after seeing these pictures I do get one thing." I said "what?" she replied "I think hitler did have a point." What would have been a good reply for me?
How is this disrespectful? That lady survived and went on to have a beautiful family. I am certain she lost many members of her family and friends at that death camp. It is not disrespect, it is a reminder that from this horrible horrible event that life still flourished after. That people were saved and went on to live and laugh and love. That no matter how terrible their experiences were, they survived and they thrived. If anything, it is a beautiful tribute to those that were lost. It is telling people to remember. Remember that people died there, but that people lived because of those people, their stories will never be forgotten. Those that died will never be forgotten.
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You did an amazing job of showing the happiness of life moving on against a backdrop of darkness, clouds and hate. I loved seeing your pictures of your family and all of the generations that have come since that terrible time. Never forget and bless your heart!
Thank you Patricia for your kind words. I appreciate it ❤️
Load More Replies... We should #NeverForget the #Holocoust, I´m German and belong to a completely other generation, have been born in 1971, I´m an absolute anti-fascist and anti-racist, we´re all God´s children, no matter what nationality, what ethnical origin, what religion, what colour of skin or what sexual direction we may have, we´re all God´s children and he loves us all, only doesn´t love the animal abusers, the child molesters, the rapists and other criminals!!!
Agreed. Thank you Marion, I'm very happy to hear your perspective.
Load More Replies... Thank you so much for sharing this, Noam. My great great grandparents were German Jews and I have spent many many years studying Holocaust history. My fear is what happens when there are no survivors left to tell these stories? We must never, never forget the atrocities committed against the Jews, the gay people, the disabled people, and all of the others killed in the camps. Please educate the children so that these people's spirits may live on!!
Most definitely. That's the main reason behind this project. Thank you so much.
Load More Replies... When I visited the city of Dachau, (then) W. Germany, we visited a museum detailing the Celtic history of the city. Settled by Celts, the city has been continuously lived in for more than 2,000 years. With this in my heart, we then visited the infamous Dachau concentration camp. While viewing the evidence and proof of human depravity, I kept in mind that Survivors live to pass on their strength, resilience, humor, wisdom and culture to generations of descendants.
Very true. I can tell you that as a 3rd generation I feel that even I inherited a few of my grandmother's unique qualities.
Load More Replies... I'm blown away, this is such a beautiful tribute....We can never forget. Blessings to your family.
My father was in aushwitz, birkenau, melk, mauthausen and ebensee. I wish I could’ve done what you did for him. It would’ve helped him work out some of his suffering.Thank you. Your a brilliant photographer
Thank you so much Barbara, I appreciate you 🙏🏻
Load More Replies... Did you leave the photo frames there? This is a beautiful testimony to life and the resilience of the human spirit. Your grandmother's strength made it possible for all these beautiful lives to exist. It's sad to think of the generation cut off from those who did not survive. It's important to remember this evil and fight those who desire to repeat it. Thanks for sharing.
I loved seeing the family photos, especially your grandmother's. All such strong, beautiful people. It's so important to remember what generations before have gone through so that we can have a happier life today. Very moving work. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for your lovely feedback. Super important to remember and pass it on..
Load More Replies... This is very beautiful and haunting. The themes of triumph and resilience despite so many atrocious horrors is my favourite part. Your only picture of your grandmother is very wonderful. Seeing the pictures moved me to tears and I'm very sorry for what your family had to go through. One of my grandfathers was a Nazi and there's not one day where I go by without thinking about the Holocaust. The Nazis were pure evil and what happened should never be forgotten so that history never repeats itself. Thank you for sharing something so personal and powerful.
Thank you, this means a lot, taking in mind your own family history. I'm sure the subject occupies your mind just as much. We all must remember what happened and pass it on to the next generation as for them this would already be too far down the pages of history. Thank you for sharing your thoughts here as well.
Load More Replies... Thank you so much for sharing your strength , your talent and yes a story that we HAVE TO NEVER FORGET . My mother grew up in France where , she was teenager at the time , their house , a farm with a big wood lot , was requisitioned by the Germans . They had to feed them , take care of them , they would hide their weapons in the woods .....and at the same time , she was doing undercover work for the French army , sending messages , carrying boxes of ammunitions to blow up bridges .....I wish she could have share more ...she refused ..... Oh why the ego of humanity can bring so much pain and destruction upon itself ????? Why the need to be “right” , to impose our truth to other , to annihilate the soul of another ?????? May we be peaceful , and may I place my hand in yours so together we can do what I cannot do alone .
Thank you Nancy. We always wish they would have shared much more, don't we? Let's do this together, totally ❤️
Load More Replies... This is powerful and beautiful. I loved seeing her wedding photos, right there in that place, as if to make a stand so incredible that after what they did to her and millions of others, she still came out and became a beautiful bride and eventually great-grandmother! Thank you for sharing this, its incredible.
Thank you for your beautiful words Mina. I appreciate it.
Load More Replies... What an absolutely fantastic way to show what Auschwitz was. This is really inspired - it shows the horror of what was taken, as well as the triumph over hate by those who survived. This is the only series of Auschwitz photos that I've ever been completely comfortable viewing. It doesn't seem like a place that should be photographed, to me, but this series is a celebration of the survivors.
Thank you Beth, I'm happy to hear that. You know during the war the Nazi's made a "photo album" of Auschwitz, their sick way of documenting the factory of death. To me, this is the survivors' version of a photo album from Auschwitz.
Load More Replies... We must never forget. Human atrocities happen everyday. I'm glad that this site has been preserved. They could have just torn it down and built over it. I'm so glad you were able to visit and carry out this project, and I thank you for sharing it. God surely blessed your grandmother.
I am so sorry you all had to live through this all. . And so glad some of you survived. And i am sorry i just cannot bear to look at the horrible place., And praying always ( i d k to whom ) humans can get some wisdom and compassion so this never ever happens again.
This is a great project idea, Noam. Thank you for sharing it with the rest of us. My husband's parents were both also Auschwitz survivors. It is something that we talk about almost everyday. So few (Jewish and non-Jewish) people realize that Anti-Semitism is still alive and well today--all over the Middle East and Europe, and it has infected the United Nations for decades. There are tens of millions of people in the world who still teach their children that killing Jews is a desirable thing, passing on the world's oldest hatred to yet another generation.
Very true Lyone, hatred and anti-semitism are very much alive all over the world, in different shapes and forms. That's why it's so important to commemorate this International Remembrance Day, talk about it and make sure people learn from history. I do hope your husband's parents are both alive and well, and that you cherish this precious time of being around them.
Load More Replies... Amazing photo project. I loved seeing the joy of your family and faith in all the pictures. Beautifully done. <3
Wow. This literally took my breath away. I wasn't going to post a comment just because I never do... but it's made a lasting impact on my emotions. The fact that you had this project in your mind and actually set out and accomplished it is so meaningful and impactful for your family, but for many others as well. The whole project is raw and candid and has a whole multi generational story. You created something your family will cherish forever as they continue to grow and multiply. Knowledge of their roots. Just amazing. Thanks for sharing :]
Thank you so much Alyssa. Appreciate your comment very much 🙏🏻
Load More Replies... Wow. This literally took my breath away. I wasn't going to post because I never do... but this was just emotionally brave. The idea of doing this and making it happen so beautifully is awe inspiring. Such a touching and raw way to show your future generations where they came from.
Beautiful ❤️ thank you and hahah take that 😝 my grandfather also survived, we are romani not Jewish though. I love seeing post like this, we all came through and we lived on and that is history, I love that everything they (the bad guys) stood for fell apart and we live on and on ❤️ Stronger and better but always remembering ❤️
I'm glad your family prosped after all that living nightmare. You deserve all the happiness the world has to offer. I'd like to inform you as of lately my nephue came home from school and I asked him about world war 2 and the hollacoust. Their teaching him in school that the camps and what happened to the Jewish people never happened. I told him to go to the public libarey and check himself. He came home horrified. He could not believe what they told him in school. But worst yet was the realality of reading and seeing the horrable things that were done to his fellow man. It's something that has changed his life. Please check and see if your schools are teaching student's the real history of the world not the water down version.
Thank you Walter. Where are you located in the world? Hearing that his school teaches them that this never happened is horrifying.
Load More Replies... We should never forget what happened there, so history won't repeat itself. I'm glad your grandmother survived and lived a long good life. Beautiful tribute.
Thank you, bless you for this. It is one of the most moving presentations about the Holocaust that I have ever seen. Beginning with the train tracks that delivered millions of people into hell. A picture of your beautiful family who exists because your great grandmother survived. But also, families just like yours, in their own pictures, at your ages, getting married, Bar Mitzvahs, Hanukkah, babies being born, living their lives just like your family has done, they arrived on that train with her. Walking through that gate, a picture of a family not possible except for her strength to survive and not being pulled out of line during the morning count. What you have put together is a photographic evidence for hope, but only if we remember what people are capable of. I dread the day when the last survivor has passed. We all owe a debt of responsibility to all of them to never let the knowledge of what happened to them there and in all the other camps die along with them.
I’m truly touched by what you said, thank you. You’re absolutely correct, we must always always remember.
Load More Replies... How many people would there have been in the generations that were never born?
This was truly moving, and made me cry a bit - sadness for all the suffering endured, and happiness that this lovely woman was able to not only escape this terrible place, but thrive and live a full, beautiful life. Thank you so very much for sharing a part of your history.
This is beautiful. This event should never ever be forgotten. Even in the centuries and millennia to come. Every year I always go to the Imperial War Museum in London , as they have a very thought provoking permanent exhibition of The Holocaust. Just to remind me and to re-educate myself as to what happened. We should never forget.
I wish more people would do the same as you, Chewie.
Load More Replies... What a fantastic way to memorialize your family. A giant f••k you to those evil people. You tried to break their spirits but you only made them stronger. When I was 13 I went to Dachau. I remember crying asking my mom how could people not know! There were neighborhoods right there. They had to have known. 33 years later and I remember her saying "denial is a powerful thing. They didn't want to end up there too." The bunk houses were the same in these photos. I remember thinking there was no way people could be made to live like that. Well, I'm older now and understand the evil of those people more. The fact that they have walked among us in my lifetime boils my blood.
Trust me, most if not all of them knew. Some cooperated with the Nazis as we all know. But yes, ultimately they lost.
Load More Replies... What an amazing tribute. Not only did your grandmother survive, she thrived. And isn't that the best revenge, they say? Living well? She must have been an incredible woman. How to make it out of that horror with any sanity left boggles the mind.
Thank you. It takes a super power if you ask me.
Load More Replies... Brilliant project. I am also a 3rd generation as my grandmother survived the Holocaust. Luckily she was 19 years old and extremely physically and mentally fit so she was sent to a concentration camp to work where she spent her days producing flax material for the Nazis to use instead of just murdering her. My great-grandparents and their 2 youngest children were sent straight to Auschwitz while other relatives were just murdered in the village massacre when the trains were full. Only my grandmother and her brother survived the Holocaust.
Thank you for sharing, Jonathan. Thank God we're here to keep their legacy alive.
Load More Replies... Wow this is a really beautiful idea. Unbelievable how many future generations have been wiped out by this atrocious Genocide. I am German, too. And I agree with Marion. We are all different and that's why we are beautiful and it makes life interesting. We should learn from another, not hate each other. I too think that you should carry on, educating people, because there won't be any Survivors left soon. Only their descendants.
this must never be forgotten thank you for the memories, we live in a world of so much that we are inclined to forget how we got it and who suffered for it. no matter where we are or who we are this did happen and our hearts need to remember those lovely souls who are no more, but not forgotten
Those photos really moved me. I'm really ashamed of decisions and the message that the present majority in the polish government is sending to the world, these last couple of days. I'm polish and they don't speak in my name or in the name of any of my friends or family. Beautiful project, thank you for sharing.
Thank you. I have to agree that the news coming from Poland in the last few days are very disturbing. Thank you for speaking out against it and for your kind words.
Load More Replies... It's so beautiful to see what satan/hitler planned failed. Your family is a wonderful testimony to there is always a remenant.
Szama, it's simple - if we forget, we allow this to happen again. 6 million Jews were systematically exterminated, you can"t just say "forget about it". If you do, this would quickly be repeated and possibly with any "undesirable" group. We MUST all remember and commemorate for future generations.
Load More Replies... “Her unbelievable strength is what got her out of there.” So you are saying that the people who dies there died because they were weak.
After scrolling through all the pics my colleague said "hmm after seeing these pictures I do get one thing." I said "what?" she replied "I think hitler did have a point." What would have been a good reply for me?
How is this disrespectful? That lady survived and went on to have a beautiful family. I am certain she lost many members of her family and friends at that death camp. It is not disrespect, it is a reminder that from this horrible horrible event that life still flourished after. That people were saved and went on to live and laugh and love. That no matter how terrible their experiences were, they survived and they thrived. If anything, it is a beautiful tribute to those that were lost. It is telling people to remember. Remember that people died there, but that people lived because of those people, their stories will never be forgotten. Those that died will never be forgotten.
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