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Survivor Reflections and Testimonies

Echoes of Memory

Read reflections and testimonies written by Holocaust survivors in their own words.

These essays and testimonials come from our guided writing workshops for Holocaust Survivors. Learn more about our Writing Workshop for Holocaust Survivors.

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Displaying 1-10 of 522 Essays

  • Loves Explored

    On a recent Saturday morning, I felt the slight touch of a hand on my face. It was Jackson, our seven-year-old grandson, with a big smile on his cheery face.

    Topic: Jewish Communities Before the War, Life After the Holocaust, Family
    Volume: Volume 16

  • Maly Trostenets

    On January 27, 2014, the world commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day, marking the day in January 1945 when Soviet troops liberated the Auschwitz camp complex in German-occupied Poland.

    Topic: Remembrance, Mass Atrocities, Deportations
    Volume: Volume 16

  • Meeting Luigi

    I’d like to share about a very meaningful day at the Museum, April 10, 2024. A group of survivors were asked to meet with a visiting photographer to participate in an ongoing project.

    Topic: Photographer, Documenting the Holocaust, Museum Volunteer
    Volume: Volume 16

  • My Responsibilities as a Survivor

    I think of myself now as a survivor of the Holocaust. This was not always the case.

    Topic: Museum Volunteer, Remembrance, Documenting the Holocaust
    Volume: Volume 16

  • The Importance of Talking

    For many years when we talked about family history, we had a few stories we always told.

    Topic: Refugee Ships, Children's Aid Society, Documenting the Holocaust
    Volume: Volume 16

  • Heroes

    When the German army went against the Soviet Union, the Hungarian army followed.

    Topic: Rescue and Resistance, Deportations, Arrow Cross
    Volume: Volume 16

  • Growing Up

    You learn many things in life, and from many people, but never as much as from the people who raise you.

    Topic: Family, Memory, Life After the Holocaust
    Volume: Volume 16

  • The “Untranslatable” Translated!

    For the last 20-plus years, I have been a volunteer at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. Here I finally learned details about the Holocaust, the enormity of it, and how lucky I am to be alive.

    Topic: Museum Volunteer, Jewish Resistance, Denunciation, Family
    Volume: Volume 16

  • A Memory Long Forgotten

    It has been many years since World War II, and I continue to bear witness to what I remember.

    Topic: Life After the Holocaust, Hidden Children
    Volume: Volume 16

  • My Little Sister

    My sister, Eva, was born on June 30, 1939, just two months before the outbreak of World War II.

    Topic: Anti-Jewish Legislation, Hiding, Life After the Holocaust
    Volume: Volume 16