Montreal, March 23, 2015 – As the world marks the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and the liberation of the Jews of Europe, the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre (MHMC) and Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre in Toronto are proud to announce an historic agreement with USC Shoah Foundation - The Institute for Visual History and Education to have their testimonies integrated in the Visual History Archive as part of the Institute’s Preserving the Legacy initiative.

Bella Fox recalls the terrifying experience of arriving to Auschwitz-II Birkenau from the Sighet ghetto in Romania. Bella’s testimony was collected by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre and will be integrated into the Visual History Archive part of the Preserving the Legacy Initiative.

Louis de Groot describes being hidden by different gentile families in the Netherlands during WWII. While in hiding, he attended a Christmas church service and remembers how the pastor urged the congregation to help save Jewish lives.

Free and open to the public, monthly Institute visits give guests a chance to explore the life stories of survivors and witnesses of the Holocaust and other genocides and to discover how their memories are being used to overcome prejudice, intolerance and bigotry. The public visit for May is full. The next scheduled visit will be available soon. Description:

Comcast subscribers will be able to watch USC Shoah Foundation testimonies and films exploring the theme of music on Comcast’s second annual Days of Remembrance: PastFORWARD broadcast.

The Center is now in possession of over 40 boxes of documents from the historic Martin Marootian et al. v. New York Life Insurance Company class action lawsuit.

Albrecht Becker describes how in the immediate aftermath of liberation Germans, including German Jews, were silent about Nazi atrocities in an attempt to return to a normal as soon as possible.

A Lecture with Dr. Wendy Lower, Claremont McKenna College, USC Shoah Foundation 2015 Yom Hashoah Scholar in Residence

Henry Morgenthau III talks about his grandfather who was the Ambassador to Turkey during World War I.

Nium Sukkar, an Arab eye witness from Deir Zor who describes seeing Armenians being deported to desert.

Raphael Zimetbaum speaks of his gratitude toward the Armenian people in Marseille, France. Along with his parents, he fled from Antwerp, Belgium, to Marseille, France, following the German invasion of Belgium in 1940. In Marseille, his family found housing within the Armenian community neighborhood, where they felt so welcome and were received with great affection. He states that he thinks that the sensitivity extended to his family may have been in part due to the history of the Armenian Genocide and the suffering the Armenian people endured at the time. 

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and the first integration of Armenian Genocide testimonies into the Visual History Archive, USC Shoah Foundation will release one clip from the Armenian Genocide collection on the Institute’s website each day for the next 30 days.

Haigas Bonapart describes how his two sitster took their own lives rather than be forced to marry Turks.

Main Line Reform Temple 410 Montgomery Ave, Wynnewood, PA

University of Pennsylvania Lubavitch House4032 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA

Har Zion Temple1500 Hagys Ford Road, Penn Valley, PAThis year’s program will include a survivor candle lighting, memorial service and special screening of the film Auschwitz. This definitive new short film, produced by Steven Spielberg, directed by James Moll and narrated by Meryl Streep, was created for the official commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. The honored guest is Auschwitz survivor Israel Arbeiter, who will share his life experiences including his recent trip back to Poland.

Professor Richard Hovannisian explains the emotion expressed in the eyewitness testimonies to the Armenian Genocide is what sets the Armenian Genocide Testimony Collection at USC Shoah Foundation apart from other written and audio testimony collections.

Due to the ongoing political and military conflicts in their country, many students in Ukraine have something in common with Holocaust survivors: They have all experienced the fear and uncertainty of war.

Professor Richard Hovannisian provides commentary for the testimony clip of Jirair Suchiasian.

Los Angeles, March 26, 2015 –  Echoes and Reflections, a comprehensive Holocaust education program that provides professional development and an array of resources for middle and high school teachers, is marking its 10th anniversary in 2015 with a strong trail of success behind it and ambitious goals for the future.