The FHM highlights the individual stories of 25 Holocaust Survivors
August 25, 2017 [St. Petersburg, FL] – The Florida Holocaust Museum (The FHM) has partnered with Eckerd College to release a 25th Anniversary oral history series titled “25 Survivors, 25 Stories… Celebrating 25 Years!”
Over the next 25 months, the Museum’s oral history series will feature a different Holocaust Survivor on the 25th of every month. Each Survivor brings to the series an individual voice that enlivens our understanding of the Holocaust; the war’s effects on individuals, families, and communities dispersed across the world; and its reverberations into the present moment.
The sixth story was released this morning and features Holocaust Survivor Alex Larys. An excerpt from the piece is as follows:
On April 7, 1945, about a week before the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen camp, German officers loaded 2,500 Jews, including Alex and his family, onto three trains bound for Theresienstadt concentration camp, near Prague in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia.
Six days later, on April 13, 1945, as the train was traveling through Farsleven, Germany, U.S. forces captured the town and Nazi guards fled and abandoned the train there. Alex and his family were liberated there by the 30th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army.
Alex was six years old at the time of liberation. The moment remains in his memory. “The train came to a stop, and we were outside, outside on the ground. There was a little hill leading up to a road, and then a teenager, a teenage boy came running down, saying ‘Americans are here!’ So, everybody ran up the hill.” There, they met the American forces.
To read Alex’s story in its entirety, please visit:
In the coming months, The FHM will present numerous 25th Anniversary celebratory programs, events, and exhibitions, along with its daily educational and outreach efforts.
September 7- Sponsored by The Florida Holocaust Museum, Frank Meeink, author of Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead, will share his personal story at Eckerd College. Meeink was a skinhead at age 13. At age 18, he was finally arrested and convicted of kidnapping and beating a member of a rival skinhead gang. While in prison, he befriended men he used to think he hated, men of different races. After being released from prison, Meeink tried to rejoin his old skinhead pals but couldn’t bring himself to hate those who he now knew to be his friends. Now a noted speaker and author, Meeink’s life stands for tolerance, diversity, and mutual understanding in racial, political, and all aspects of society. This program is free and open to the public and will take place on Thursday, September 7th at 7:00 p.m. at Eckerd College, Fox Hall. Please RSVP by calling 727-820-0100, ext. 301.
September 9- The Florida Holocaust Museum is please to present the exhibition The Holocaust and the Book of Fire by Murray Zimiles. The exhibition opening reception will take place on Saturday, September 9th at 5:30 p.m. and in conjunction with Keep St. Pete Lit and the Second Saturday ArtWalk, nine writers will perform their short stories, poems, and imaginings inspired by this exhibition. The paintings, drawings, prints, and artist’s books by Murray Zimiles are graphic statements means to engage and propel the viewer into a whirlwind of fire and devastation. In these powerful works, Zimiles deals with the perceived absence of God and the absence of civilization during the Holocaust. The exhibition opening reception and performance is free and open to the public. Complimentary beer, wine, and snacks will be served. Please RSVP by calling 727-820-0100, ext. 301.
To learn more about The FHM’s upcoming 25th Anniversary events and exhibitions, visit the Museum online at www.TheFHM.org/25th.
The Florida Holocaust Museum is located at 55 5th Street S, St. Petersburg, FL 33701.
About The Florida Holocaust Museum
2017 marks a monumental milestone for The Florida Holocaust Museum (The FHM) as the Museum celebrates its 25th Anniversary. One of the largest Holocaust museums in the country, and one of three nationally accredited Holocaust museums, The FHM honors the memory of millions of men, women and children who suffered of died in the Holocaust. The FHM is dedicated to teaching members of all races and cultures the inherent worth and dignity of human life in order to prevent future genocides. For additional information, please visit www.TheFHM.org.
