"You remind me of my sister."

Mr. Henry Greenbaum
Born: April 1, 1928
 Starachowice, Poland
Liberated: April 25, 1945

The ghastly memories of a not-so-distant past preserved inside the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum will surely invoke a storm of emotion in every visitor's heart. The experience is further magnified upon hearing from someone whose life and soul were forever changed during those horrific years.

It was 1940 when Henry and his family were forced from their home in Poland by a set of those menacing Gestapo whose presence had long been a source of fear for the 12-year-old boy. Upon arrival at the first of several camps that he would inhabit during the coming years, Henry and his family were split up in the selection process. He and his two strongest sisters were directed to one side, comprised of those deemed fit for slave labor, while his mother and two frailer sisters were led away to Treblinka where they were executed.

When Henry’s story was finished, he graciously spent time chatting with us, answering our questions, and even posing for a photo. Finally it was my turn to shake his hand and offer my thanks - he grasped my hand with both of his and looked into my eyes with an expression of fierce sorrow.

“How old are you?” he asked.

“I’m 21,” came my reply.

Henry shook his head sadly. What he said next left me taken aback to say the least.

“You remind me so much of my youngest sister,” he told me, placing his hands on my shoulders. “She was small just like you, and so the Officers decided she wasn't fit enough to work at the camp. She was led away to the ‘showers,’ and I never saw her again.”

Stunned silence on my end.

“You’re so lucky to have been born when and where you were,” he went on.

In awe of Mr. Greenbaum

A feeble, “Yes,” and a nod were all I could manage. Henry's point was matter-of-fact: I likely would not have survived the holocaust.

The profound eye contact I sustained with Henry during that brief conversation will forever define my perception of the holocaust. Never have those awful years been more real to me than in that moment.

It’s a common theme among holocaust survivors and throughout the USHMM to pass on the real-life horror stories of WWII Germany. Those stories must not die, such that we remember why it must never be allowed to happen again. That’s why more than 90 survivors volunteer their time to the Museum to bravely recount, over and over to thousands of strangers, the worst days of their lives.

The legacy they strive for is a call to action - never forget.

-Sara Joy Goff