From the Heart : Life Before and After the Holocaust - A Mosaic of Memories

by Midwest Center for Holocaust Education, Trudi Galblum, Monroe Dodd (Editor)

This is the story of 52 men and women who began their lives in homelands faraway, who saw their lives unalterably changed by the Holocaust - a watershed event in human history - and who rebuilt their lives in America. Now, these men and women tell their stories - straight from the heart. These witnesses tell about their families, their friends, and their faith as they grew up before World War II in Central and Eastern Europe. Their words form a touching tribute to a world that was taken from them, and to the mosaic of Jewish life that existed in places ranging from cosmopolitan world capitals to isolated farming communities. Having been uprooted from life as they knew it in the Old World, they renewed their lives in the New World. Each eventually called the Midwest home. Each came to metropolitan Kansas City. This volume begins with accounts drawn from interviews of the 52 witnesses. In the interviews they describe their world before and after the war. In addition, their family photographs and photographs from the archives of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum help capture those times of innocence, fear, pain, and - eventually - hope. In the end, the witnesses reflect on their lives, the lessons they learned and the lessons they want the world to learn from their experiences.

164 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2001