Holocaust survivor speaks at YSU

Staff report

youngstown

Holocaust survivor, writer and internationally known educator Irving Roth tells his story at 7 p.m. Jan. 20, in the Chestnut Room of Kilcawley Center at Youngstown State University.

The free event is co-sponsored by the Center for Judaic and Holocaust Studies at YSU and by the Youngstown Area Jewish Federation.

Roth, 83, is director of the Holocaust Resource Center in Manhasset, N.Y. He was born in Czechoslovakia.

At 14, Roth was loaded into a cattle car on a train, along with hundreds of other Jews in his city and sent to Auschwitz. Roth survived the atrocities of both Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps, but his grandmother and grandfather were killed in gas chambers, and his brother was killed in a concentration camp. His parents survived, thanks to a Christian woman who hid them in her apartment.

An internationally known educator, Roth has endeavored to teach people about the Holocaust and the lessons that can be learned from that experience to ensure that an atrocity such as the Holocaust never happens again.

Roth has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including the Spirit of Anne Frank Award, for his work promoting a more accepting and diverse world.

He also is author of the book “Bondi’s Brother: A Story of Love, Loss, Betrayal and Liberation.”