Sara Greenberg was so moved by her grandparents’ stories of survival and resilience during the Holocaust that she made a film to honor their history and inspire others to act out against genocide.

Greenberg is pursuing a joint master’s degree in public policy and business administration at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Business School. She also works with various non-profit organizations focused on Holocaust education and genocide prevention, including the Anti-Defamation League, RefugePoint, Taglit-Birthright Israel and the Hong Kong Holocaust and Tolerance Resource Center of which she currently is a board member.

In order to share the stories of her grandparents, Joseph and Reli Gringlas, with others, and allow their stories to have a lasting impact, Greenberg decided to make a film documenting her family’s trips to Eastern Europe both on their own in 2005 and with the IDF in 2012. On the trips, the family visited locations throughout Slovakia and Poland where her grandparents had been during the war.

“Walking through the barracks of Auschwitz with my grandfather, listening as he told inconceivable stories about his time in the camp, all I could think about was how I wanted the world to see, hear and feel the same way I felt at that very moment,” Greenberg said. “I was angry. I was sad. How could the world have let this happen?”

The result is a 14-minute documentary titled B-2247: A Granddaughter’s Understanding. In addition to footage of the family’s travels, the film features excerpts of Joseph’s testimony, which he gave to the Shoah Foundation in 1996. That day marked the first time then-eight-year-old Greenberg learned about his Holocaust experience. Reli survived the Holocaust in hiding and also gave testimony to the Shoah Foundation.

USC Shoah Foundation executive director Stephen Smith invited Greenberg to screen her film at an opening reception for the video installation Generations: Survival and the Legacy of Hope at the UN in 2010 and then speak alongside her mother and grandparents about the importance of remembering.

“It is important that this message be delivered at a place like the UN. Ambassadors from around the world must not only vow to "Never Forget," but also to act in a way that prevents history from repeating itself,” Greenberg said.

Greenberg said her grandfather is her “hero,” and she is grateful that her grandparents have been willing to share their stories with her. The Visual History Archive allows current and future generations to continue to learn from the survivors themselves, even after they are no longer able to tell their stories themselves, she noted.

“My generation is probably the last generation to be able to hear our grandparents' survival stories firsthand. We are heirs to their memories, their stories,” Greenberg said. “It is a big responsibility; a responsibility enabled and empowered by their witness testimony.”