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Stein Explores Lives Shaped by Holocaust
By Chana Shapiro
Atlanta author Rachel Stein dedicates “To Tell the Story” to “the heroes and heroines within these pages. What gave you the strength to live through seemingly endless torture and brutality? How were you able to start anew?”
Stein does her best to answer these questions. This volume contains gripping stories of 13 Holocaust survivors who came from diverse backgrounds and different European countries. Many of them eventually made their home in Atlanta where they rebuilt their lives, raised their families, and became active members and builders of the Jewish community.
To present the uniqueness of each survival story, every account is treated as an entity, with its own theme and brief introduction. Pre-World War II photographs deepen the contents with pictures of family members mentioned in the narratives. The juxtapositions of survivors’ halcyon early years, the horrors of the concentration and work camps, and their subsequent fulfilling and productive lives make each story poignant and instructive.
Many of the survivors will be familiar to readers who know them as respected Atlanta business owners, community builders and educators. “To Tell the Story” opens doors into their past.
Helen Borkowsky Gerson, in her chapter “The Laughing Bomb,” states, “We Holocaust survivors were like family. Only those who had lived through the indescribable suffering could understand. We looked forward to a fresh start, and what better way than to get married and have a family?” As in other cities, survivors in Atlanta gravitated toward each other and socialized regularly. Their children bonded as well, and some families were eager to make matches between their offspring.
Dr. Mark and Marsha Strazynski are an Atlanta couple, whose survivor parents Rachmil and Pola Strazynski and John and Helen Gilmer, narrate their own separate stories in the chapters “Two Fiery Torches” and “A Storehouse of Love,” respectively. Mark’s parents returned to Poland after the war, and he grew up there, still experiencing anti-Semitism. “I like to hear the survivor stories,” he said, “because each one has its own message of courage. Now that I’m an adult, I wish I had more of an understanding of how my parents’ lives were shaped by the Holocaust.”
Marsha believes that her gentle, loving father was driven to survive by his anger and desire for revenge. At the Strazynski-Gilmer “second generation” wedding, Rabbi Emanual Feldman declared, “As we stand here with these two survivors’ children under the chuppah, we’re witness to a phoenix flying out of a raging fire. This is our revenge. These two people, whom Hitler tried to prevent from ever being born, are demonstrative of our ultimate survival.”
Stein successfully assumes the survivors’ personalities, emotions and beliefs to emphasize the individuality of each speaker by writing in their “voices,” their speaking styles. Most of the survivors in “To Tell the Story” are no longer living. Therefore, in addition to Stein’s own live interviews, their children and relatives added details and anecdotes.
All the protagonists in “To Tell the Story” have their own truths and insights. Atlantan Lucy Carson, in her chapter “Behind the Walls,” reflects, “I witnessed the worst evil imaginable. Cruelty surrounded me, and I lived in constant fear. And yet, I was privileged to see the incredible greatness and kindness of the human heart. Caring strangers risked their lives time and time again to save me and so many others.”
In spite of their differences, the 13 sagas share common themes. All of the survivors consider their survival a G-d-given miracle. All of them exhibited impossible endurance and all witnessed individual acts of generosity and compassion amid depravation and death.
Recently, the AJT joined Holocaust survivors, their children and grandchildren, who were among the many visitors at Judaica Corner gift shop in Toco Hills for the launch and signing of “To Tell the Story.” The room resounded with iterations of “Rachel, thank you for writing these memoirs!”
One slight drawback to the book is Stein’s decision to honor every personality by capturing their words with such precision. Lacking a helpful glossary, some words, phrases and concepts, which were integral to the lives of the speakers, will be unfamiliar to the reader. Nevertheless, when taken in context, a reader will be able to discern the meaning and move on, without losing the continuity of each unforgettable story. ì
Rachel Stein displays her book at the book launch. The stories of the parents of Atlantans Marsha and Mark Strazynski are recounted n Stein’s book.
“To Tell the Story” desribes the experiences of many Atlanta Holocaust survivors.
By Marcia Caller Jaffe
Fans of the Netflix series “Unorthodox,” wildly popular at the start of the pandemic, are reacting to a new portrayal, “My Unorthodox Life.” The new series premiered last month.
The former was fictionalized but based on a real woman’s book about her decision to leave behind Hasidism in Brooklyn. The latter is reality TV, a la “Jewish Kardashians,” told through the eyes and strident voice of fashion mogul Julia Haart, who shredded her interpretation of the “burden” of charedi Orthodoxy in 2013.
The drama unfolds, and perhaps the dénouement that disturbs some viewers, is deprogramming her family alongside. Special note: Haart taught at Yeshiva Atlanta under the name Talia Hendler in the late 1990s.
On the one hand, Russian-born Haart, 50, is charismatic as she shares her posh office space, runway shows, multi-million-dollar Tribeca digs, her gay best friend, and one daughter’s bisexuality. Alternatively, her other daughter’s struggle to become less observant pales to Haart’s treatment of her teen son. One of the most heart-rending scenes is when he returns from summer camp with a love of Torah and she won’t relinquish her angst. “You need to date girls and go out into the world before you decide any of this. I am older. I know better.”
Particularly irritating is her forced use of the “f” word, like teen boys cursing to be cool. Then there are her clothes: skirts, the shortest, and cleavage exposure. Having been in my own reality A&E show, “My Dog’s Bat Mitzvah,” I should note that the producers push to portray the most provoking and outrageous topics, like Haart’s sharing her honeymoon night details with her kids or teaching a questioning religious girl how to use a vibrator. On the other hand, we like the voyeurism of the rich lifestyle: renting a castle, closets of Balmain and Vuitton, suitcases of Chanel bags.
Haart achieved success initially without speaking of her religious Monsey past. Well, sort of; new husband Silvio Scaglia turns out to be (if Googled) a toptier wealthy entrepreneur who bought the Elite World Group that she runs. At an earlier point, she did successfully launch La Perla clothing. Smart woman, no doubt.
Occasionally Haart charms when she explains the meaning of Sukkot or quotes Hebrew sages, such as: “All beginnings are difficult.” At meals, she points out the kosher food to the kids who want to remain so.
Haart is emotional in explaining that she was suicidal being trapped in her first marriage and not able to control her own destiny, which is the message she is carrying forth. Interestingly, Haart appeared on “The View” on ABC July 23, very tastefully dressed from her location in Paris. Her “affect” was in contrast to her reality boss persona.
Viewer Helene Cohen noted, “Watching the series made me realize how much the men feel they need to control the women under the guise that the women need protecting.”
Susan Proctor remarked, “I’m honestly not sure that I am intrigued enough to watch the whole thing. I watched the documentary ‘One of Us,’ which is an accurate depiction about ultra-Orthodox trying to withdraw from the sect. I think that Julia is the exception more than the rule. She is a self-promoter. It’s interesting that they did the show, and I may watch more of it.”
Dena Schusterman, executive director of Intown Jewish Preschool, recalled working with Haart (then Hendler) more than 25 years ago. “I am not watching ‘Unorthodox.’ I don’t watch reality TV; I am not going to start now.
“Talia was a brilliant teacher; as her colleague at Yeshiva Atlanta, I learned a lot from her. I was in my early 20s. She was ‘wicked smart’ and confident, the same as you see today.
“I really dislike labeling people, especially the label ‘Orthodox,’ in general. I would rather focus on what unites than what divides us. That we are different is a given. If American culture allows for someone to tell a story in this brazen, loud, over-the-top way, who am I to tell them not to? One thing the ‘frum’ world can take from this hullabaloo is to pop their bubble and go out into the world. Be friendly, get curious about the general population. I think in response to our real interactions with the world, without ulterior motives, we will, by default, introduce people to our nuanced and deep observant life.”
After the airing of “My Unorthodox Life” last month, social media lit up with accom-
plished observant women who declared, “I have a wonderful life, and no one is controlling me.” One teacher in Fort Lauderdale noted, “Some young girls do express to me their doubts about their path in Orthodoxy. I do not shut them down. I listen intently and say ‘That’s what makes Judaism so beautiful. You are allowed to question.’”
Bottom line: Like it or not, I watched with keen interest; but it felt like Meghan Markle justifying her “dishing” to Oprah. ì
Noam Galai / Getty Images for Elite World Group // Julia Haart welcomes the crowd at the New York premiere. Her skimpy attire drives home the point of the series.
Noam Galai / Getty Images for Elite World Group // New York lit up for the show’s premiere.
Times of Israel // Scene from “My Unorthodox Life.”
Times of Israel // Julia Haart in “My Unorthodox Life.”
Noam Galai / Getty Images for Elite World Group // Julia Haart flanked by her children and son-in-law.