We Must Never Forget:  My Parent's Story of Survival

Friday, June 28, 2024
SPEAKER: Renee Karson, daughter of Holocaust survivors, Irving & Frieda Mann

Renee Karson’s parents, Irving and Frieda Mann, never discussed their experiences in the Holocaust with her or her brother.  However, they knew that they were in concentration camps and had lost most of their family; they were never told details about what they had experienced.  Over time, they discovered that their dad was from Lithuania and spent time in the Kovno Ghetto, survived the Dachau work camp and had one surviving sister, but knew little else.  Their mom, on the other hand, opened up for the first time to a 13 year old neighbor for his Bar Mitzvah project in 2013, and throughout the process created a comprehensive video of her mom's Holocaust journey, in her own words.  Although Renee’s mom passed away two years ago at the age of 98, her story lives on through Renee, as incorporated into this upcoming seminar.

Additionally, Renee’s mom was only 16 years old when the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939 and her life changed forever.  Her family was brutally taken from their home and forced to live in the Lodz Ghetto for over five years where she watched her mother and many others perish.  When the Nazis decided to liquidate the Lodz ghetto, my mom, along with her older sister, spent a brutal year being forced to work at various concentration and work camps where they were  starved and beaten on a daily basis. Renee’s mom and Aunt survived being transported via cattle cars, death marches, and selection lines of those sent to the gas chambers.  Renee’s mom was only 67 pounds when the Allies liberated the camps, only days before her mom and her sister were scheduled to be exterminated.   

Renee’s parents met at the Displaced Persons Camp at Bergen-Belsen where they began to rebuild their lives, moving first to Sweden and then settling in Chicago.  Despite the horrific suffering, brutal starvation, and personal loss that her mom experienced, she remained a very positive person all of her life.  Her wish was that her story inspires others to be kind and tolerant of each other in order for this type of cruelty to never happen again. 

To register for “We Must Never Forget:  My Parent's Story of Survival” online seminar, please fill out the form below and submit. When you register, you will be immediately transferred to another page within our website. That page will have the online access instructions no later than June 27th. Additionally, those who have registered will receive an email on June 27th providing them the online access.

Please note that this is a free event.  However, donations in support of our many arts and culture activities are always welcome. 

Learn more and become involved while helping to preserve the history of our Jewish Community.

ADDRESS:

122 E. Culver Street, Phoenix, Arizona

We are located right next to Burton Barr Phoenix Public Library. To find us, take 2nd Street south from McDowell.