Fast Fact Sheet: The Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program

• What is the Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program?

Ø The Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program was established in 2005 to collect, publish and distribute memoirs of survivors of the 20th century Nazi genocide of Jews who made their way to Canada.

Ø The books, published in English and French, are edited and fact checked. In addition to original maps, photographs, a glossary and an index, each book includes an introduction that gives broader historical context to the author's Holocaust experience.

Ø The program is guided by the conviction that each Holocaust survivor has a remarkable story to tell, and that these stories play an important role in education about diversity and tolerance, as well as Holocaust education and commemoration.

• When did it begin?

Ø The Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program was established in 2005. The first series was published on 2007.

• How many have been published? Ø 24 memoirs have been published to date – 18 in English and 13 in French.

• Where are the books available?

Ø They are for sale at book retailers across the country and online at www.azrielifoundation.org/books

Ø Over 70,000 books have been distributed free of charge to libraries and schools across Canada.

• How many manuscripts come in each year? Ø 195 manuscripts have been submitted since the program’s inception. Ø 16 new manuscripts were received in the past two years.

• How often are new books published?

Ø New titles are published every spring and fall.

Fact Sheet: The Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program Page 2

• How many memoirs are published each year?

Ø The program is currently publishing eight to ten books a year.

• How many are translated? Ø All of the books in the Azrieli Series of Holocaust Survivor Memoirs are translated into

French or English. Currently there are 13 books published in French.

Ø The Program is also in the process of translating Polish, Yiddish, Russian, Hungarian and French manuscripts into English.

• How many editors are parts of the process? Ø It depends on the specific book and time of its production; some may require experts in

specific areas of research and some may require more extensive editorial work than others.

• How many words are needed to be eligible to be published? Ø There is no minimum or maximum number of words. What is important is to capture the

first-hand experience.

Ø Submitted works of survivors have ranged from short poems, journal entries, essays, to lengthier memoirs.

Ø Shorter works (less than 15,000 words) may be published as part of an anthology or paired with another memoir, or published in the future online.

• What are the Azrieli Series of Short Films? Ø Intimate, personal profiles of the five most recently published authors of the Azrieli

Series of Holocaust Survivor Memoirs. Watch them at www.vimeo.com/azrieli

Ø In the 5-minute films, the authors reflect on their histories from childhood through to their experiences during the war to their present lives in Canada.

Ø Each profile is introduced with a reading by the author intercut with professional animation that reflects the feel and tone of the author’s excerpt. Each short film gives the viewer a small taste of a particular author's nature, character and unique story.

• What is the purpose of the Azrieli Series of Short Films? Ø To arouse people’s interest in reading the memoirs by celebrating the lives and

achievements of the authors in the program on film.

Ø To reach more people and keep history current for new generations.

Ø To capture the author’s voice in perpetuity, allowing generations of readers to “meet” the authors and hear the individual voices of those who demonstrated the courage, strength, wit and luck that it took to prevail in such terrible adversity. The films allow us to carry on with outreach and book promotion when the authors are no longer able to speak for themselves.

(More…)

Fact Sheet: The Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program

Page 3 • Where have these films been screened?

Ø These films have been shown at film festivals, broadcasted across Western Canada on Shaw/Global and screened at events across the country.

Ø The films have been used to compliment the memoirs at book clubs, author events, as well as allowing us to interest readers across the country.

Ø These short films have been used as resources for classrooms, as well as for use on the Internet and social media.

For more information visit: http://www.azrielifoundation.org/memoirs/

 

             

Dr. Naomi Azrieli, Chief Executive Officer, the Azrieli Foundation, notes:

“Millions of individual stories from the Holocaust have been lost to us forever. By preserving the stories written by survivors and making them widely available, the Azrieli Series of Holocaust Survivor Memoirs not only sustains the memory of all those who perished at the hands of hatred, abetted by indifference and apathy, but carries forward the important lessons they have to teach us about tolerance and the acceptance of diversity.”

The personal accounts of those who survived the Holocaust against all odds are as different as the people who wrote them, but all demonstrate the courage, strength, wit and luck that it took to prevail and survive in such terrible adversity. More than half a century later, the diversity of stories allows readers to put a face on what was lost, and to grasp the enormity of what happened to six million Jews – one story at a time.

The Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program publishes memoirs every six months and makes them widely available across Canada in English and French. The memoirs – published under the imprint of The Azrieli Series of Holocaust Survivor Memoirs – are distributed free of charge to educational institutions and Holocaust-education programs across Canada, and are available for sale in bookstores and online. All revenue from the sale of the memoirs goes toward continuing the publication of the memoirs and the educational work of the program.

To date, the program has collected some 190 individual memoirs. Ongoing outreach has inspired many survivors to write about their experiences. Several of the published volumes have been recognized with awards such as an Independent Publisher Book Award, a Canadian Jewish Book Award, a Moonbeam Award and the Pearson Prize.

The impetus for the Azrieli Foundation’s Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program came out of founder David J. Azrieli’s own experience of writing his memoir as a Holocaust survivor. “In telling these stories,” he relates, ”the writers have liberated themselves. For so many years we did not speak about it, even when we became free people living in a free society. Now, when at last we are writing about what happened to us in this dark period of history, knowing that our stories will be read and live on, it is possible for us to feel truly free.”

Biographies

Naomi Azrieli is Chair and CEO of the Azrieli Foundation. In this capacity, she has established the Azrieli Foundation as a force for creative and effective philanthropy in a number of fields, and as one of the premier charitable organizations in Canada. She has created and launched several programs, including the Azrieli Neurodevelopmental Research Program, the Azrieli Fellows Program, the Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Publishing Program and the Azrieli Institute for Educational Empowerment. Naomi Azrieli is also Executive Vice President of Canpro Investments Ltd., a privately-held real estate company with interests in Canada and the United States. Naomi Azrieli holds a D.Phil. in History from the University of Oxford and presently serves as Publisher and Senior Editor for the Azrieli Series of Holocaust Survivor Memoirs. Naomi Azrieli’s personal community involvements include active roles on the boards of several schools and universities. Born in Montreal, she has lived and worked in the United States, Great Britain and France, and now resides in Toronto with her husband and three children.

David J. Azrieli, C.M., C.Q., M.Arch., was born in Poland in 1922, fought with distinction in Israel’s War of Independence and came to Canada in 1954. Now regarded as one of the world’s most innovative builders and designers, David’s entry into real estate was humble, beginning with the modest construction of four houses in a Montreal suburb. Today, his innovative architectural vision can be seen in the office buildings, high-rise residences, office towers and shopping centres he has built in Canada, the United States and Israel. His two companies – Montreal-based Canpro Investments Ltd. and the Tel Aviv-based Azrieli Group – are considered leaders in their fields. In 2007, he completed construction of three skyscrapers in Tel Aviv, collectively known as the Azrieli Center – the first and most unique of their kind in the Middle East. In 1984, David was named to the Order of Canada, the country’s highest civilian honour. In 1999, he was named “chevalier” of the Ordre National du Québec, the province’s highest civilian honour. David’s lifelong commitment to philanthropic causes has been realized in the programs and institutions he has supported personally and through the establishment of the Azrieli Foundation. In this way, Azrieli has helped pave the way for others to achieve individual and community success. David Azrieli is married to Stephanie Lefcort. They have four children and seven grandchildren.

ABOUT The Azrieli Foundation is a Canadian philanthropic organization that supports a wide range of initiatives and programs in the fields of education, architecture and design, community, Holocaust commemoration and education, scientific and medical research, and the arts. For further information, please contact: Tim MacKay Social Media and Marketing, Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program tim@azrielifoundation.org Elin Beaumont Educational Outreach Manager, Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program elin@azrielifoundation.org Jody Spiegel Director, Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program jody@azrielifoundation.org 416-322-5928 press@azrielifoundation.org www.azrielifoundation.org

MEDIA  RELEASE  For  Immediate  Delivery  

 SCHOOL  BOOK  CLUBS  REVITALIZED  THROUGH  SOCIAL  MEDIA  

-­‐  Students  tweet,  connect  and  learn  with  others  across  the  country  in  first-­‐of-­‐its-­‐kind  initiative  -­‐    

(TORONTO  –  March  4,  2013)  –  Students  across  Canada  are  embarking  on  a  first-­‐of-­‐its-­‐kind  initiative  that  connects  classes  across  the  country  through  Twitter.  The  Twitter  Book  Club  is  a  unique  one-­‐month  project  for  grades  10,  11  and  12.  The  five  participating  schools  will  engage  in  real-­‐time  conversation  with  other  students  across  Canada  around  a  new  memoir,  Survival  Kit,  written  by  Holocaust  survivor  and  Toronto  resident  Zuzana  Sermer.      Depending  on  the  school,  the  Twitter  Book  Club  will  be  a  part  of  an  English,  Global  Issues  or  World  History  class.  Every  student  will  read  Survival  Kit  and  use  their  phones,  tablets  or  school  computer  labs  to  log  into  the  Twitter  chat.  Student  comments  and  questions  will  receive  real-­‐time  feedback  from  other  students  across  the  country  as  well  as  the  Azrieli  Foundation,  the  publisher  of  the  memoir  and  coordinator  of  the  online  forum.  This  project  provides  students  with  an  opportunity  to  interact  with  the  ideas  and  opinions  of  peers  miles  away  -­‐  creating  an  online  conversation  that  expands  beyond  the  walls  of  the  classroom,  creating  a  dynamic  new  engagement  with  the  survivor's  story.    The  social  media  book  club  will  also  integrate  photos,  historical  information,  maps  and  commentary  into  the  interactive  reading,  using  the  hashtag  #survivalkit  to  connect  all  tweets  and  participants.  It  will  focus  on  issues  facing  new  Canadians  by  placing  a  strong  emphasis  on  belonging,  exclusion  and  what  it  means  to  be  Canadian,  and  will  bring  learning  into  a  medium  and  setting  in  which  today’s  students  are  comfortable  and  capable.    “This  is  an  opportunity  for  students  to  reach  out  to  a  wider  audience  about  the  importance  of  Holocaust  education,”  said  Jessie  Mann,  English,  Global  Media  Studies  Teacher  at  Holy  Rosary  HS  in  Lloydminster,  Alberta  and  one  of  the  five  teachers  participating  in  the  project.  “Getting  youth  to  be  passionate  about  history  will  ensure  they  become  lifelong  learners  who  have  empathy  and  want  to  ensure  that  atrocities  like  this  do  not  continue.  Learning  should  be  engaging  and  exciting  and  by  using  this  medium  and  connecting  students  from  across  the  country,  it’s  an  interactive  way  to  read  and  share.”      Sermer’s  moving,  sensitive  and  thoughtful  story  is  an  account  of  a  15-­‐year-­‐old  girl  surviving  in  Nazi-­‐occupied  Czechoslovakia  and  Hungary  during  the  Second  World  War.  She  survived  in  hiding  until  she  met  Arthur  Sermer,  the  man  she  would  eventually  marry,  and  they  fled  to  Budapest,  Hungary.  When  Hungary  was  occupied  in  March  1944,  Zuzana  and  Arthur  navigated  through  treacherous  situations  by  first  passing  as  Polish  gentiles  with  false  documents  and  then  surviving  both  transit  camps  and  prison.    The  Twitter  Book  Club  is  a  pilot  project  of  the  Azrieli  Foundation.  If  successful  it  will  be  rolled  out  to  additional  schools  in  coming  months.    

-­‐  30  -­‐    The  Holocaust  Survivor  Memoirs  Program  was  established  by  the  Azrieli  Foundation  in  2005  to  collect,  preserve  and  share  the  memoirs  and  diaries  written  by  survivors  of  the  twentieth-­‐century  Nazi  genocide  of  the  Jews  of  Europe  who  later  made  their  way  to  Canada.  The  program  is  guided  by  the  conviction  that  each  survivor  of  the  Holocaust  has  a  remarkable  story  to  tell,  and  that  such  stories  play  an  important  role  in  education  about  tolerance  and  diversity.  The  Foundation’s  memoirs  –  in  English  and  French  -­‐  are  distributed  free-­‐of-­‐charge  to  libraries,  educational  institutions  and  Holocaust-­‐education  programs.  They  are  also  for  sale  at  select  retailers  across  Canada.  For  more  information  about  the  Azrieli  Foundation  visit  www.azrielifoundation.org  

 MEDIA  RELEASE  For  Immediate  Delivery  

 Survivors  of  Rwandan  and  Nazi  genocides  share    

the  importance  of  remembering  the  past  through  personal  testimony      

 (TORONTO  –  April  5,  2013)  –  More  than  half  of  Canada’s  Holocaust  survivors  and  more  than  5,000  members  of  the  Rwandan  community  call  Toronto  home  and  this  year  the  commemorations  of  the  atrocities  that  affected  their  communities  fall  on  the  same  date.  In  recognition  of  both  Holocaust  Remembrance  Day  and  Rwanda  Genocide  Memorial  Day,  a  compelling  program  hosted  by  the  Azrieli  Foundation  on  April  8th  at  Ryerson  University  will  bring  together  survivors  from  the  two  communities.      

“People  from  both  these  communities  have  had  to  overcome  so  much  in  their  native  countries  and  have  contributed  so  much  to  their  new  homes  in  Canada.  There  is  a  great  deal  to  learn  from  one  another,”  said  Dr.  Naomi  Azrieli,  Chair  and  Executive  Director  of  the  Azrieli  Foundation.    “Firsthand  testimony  is  a  powerful  way  to  understand  what  survivors  lived  through  and  remember  those  whom  they  have  lost.”    

“Write  to  Heal:  Genocide  and  Memoir”  will  explore  the  process  of  healing  through  writing  and  the  power  of  personal  testimony  with  survivor  and  academic  speakers:      

• Rachel  Shtibel,  Holocaust  survivor  and  author  of  her  memoir,  The  Violin.  • Dr.  Régine  King,  Assistant  Professor  of  Social  Work  at  the  University  of  Manitoba  and  Rwandan  genocide  

survivor  who  is  currently  writing  her  memoir.  • Dr.  Paula  David,  Institute  for  Life  Course  and  Aging  and  the  Faculty  of  Social  Work  at  the  University  of  Toronto,  

who  will  discuss  her  work  with  Holocaust  survivors  and  the  challenges,  benefits  and  effects  on  older  adults  of  sharing  their  personal  narratives.    

• Leora  Schaefer,  Canadian  director  of  Facing  History  and  Ourselves,  who  will  discuss  the  impact  of  memoirs    on  future  generations.    

 The  event  will  run  from  7  to  9  p.m.  at  Ryerson  University,  350  Victoria  St.,  Toronto,  Library  72.  The  event  is  open  to  the  public  but  requires  an  RSVP  to:  susan@azrielifoundation.org  or  416-­‐322-­‐5928.  

 

-­‐  30  -­‐    

The  Holocaust  Survivor  Memoirs  Program  was  established  by  the  Azrieli  Foundation  in  2005  to  collect,  preserve  and  share  the  memoirs  and  diaries  written  by  survivors  of  the  twentieth-­‐century  Nazi  genocide  of  the  Jews  of  Europe  who  later  made  their  way  to  Canada.  The  program  is  guided  by  the  conviction  that  each  survivor  of  the  Holocaust  has  a  remarkable  story  to  tell,  and  that  such  stories  play  an  important  role  in  education  about  tolerance  and  diversity.  The  Foundation’s  memoirs  –  in  English  and  French  -­‐  are  distributed  free-­‐of-­‐charge  to  libraries,  educational  institutions  and  Holocaust-­‐education  programs.  They  are  also  for  sale  at  select  retailers  across  Canada.  For  more  information  about  the  Azrieli  Foundation  visit  www.azrielifoundation.org  

 For  media  inquiries  including  interview  or  photo  requests  contact:  Brown  &  Cohen  Communications  &  Public  Affairs  Inc.  416-­‐484-­‐1132  

Jaymes  Beatty  ext.  8  or  jaymes@brown-­‐cohen.com  Wendy  Kauffman  ext.  3  or  wendy@brown-­‐cohen.com