Ruth Westheimer |

NEWS

“When someone writes from the heart . . . These books are masterpieces.”

NOVEMBER 16, 2010 – The Azrieli Foundation prides itself as being one of Canada’s leading philanthropic organizations that “supports a wide range of initiatives and programs in the fields of education, architecture and design, Jewish community, Holocaust commemoration and education, scientific and medical research, and the arts.”

One of their primary initiatives includes the internationally respected Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program. The program was established five years ago to publish the written memoirs of Holocaust survivors who arrived in Canada after the War. The memoirs are distributed free of charge by the Foundation to libraries, educational institutions and Holocaust-educational programs across Canada.

“The memoirs are a moving tribute to people – strangers and friends – who risked their lived to help others, and who, through acts of kindness and decency in the darkness of moments, frequently helped the persecuted maintain faith and humanity and courage to endure.”

The general public are also able to obtain the memoirs, at no cost, by attending an Azrieli Foundation educational event.

Some weeks ago the Azrieli Foundation launched, at a special event held in both Toronto and Montreal, their third memoir series. This year, series three consisted of four books in English and three in French. Since 2007, the Foundation has welcomed as their keynote speakers, Simone Veil, Dr Ruth Westheimer, Professor Nechama Tec, Father Patrick Desbois and more recently in Toronto, Linda P. Hooper, the initiator of the Children’s Holocaust Memorial and Paper Clip Project.

Several of the volumes of the memoirs have received international literary awards. And this past August, the Holocaust Survivor Memoirs Program began a Twitter campaign, making their books available to an even broader international market.

The Azrieli Foundation receives praise for their work in publishing the memoirs from all sectors of society. As one reader remarked from a small town located in the province of Manitoba, population 1,200: “What a privilege to read the Holocaust survivors’ memoirs. When someone writes from the heart, as these authors have, it has the potential to touch so many others. These books are masterpieces – supported with excellent maps, photographs and glossaries. I firmly believe they should be required reading in each and every school.”

All three volumes of the Series are available for free download from the Azrieli website, azrielifoundation.org. JewishinfoNews understands that e-book versions will be available in the near future.

(Above photo, from left to right: Milan Voticky, Agnes Tomasov, Naomi Azrieli (President of the Azrieli Foundation), Willie Sterner and Marian Domanski.)

(Photo credit: Eric Benchimol)