Pleasure to introduce a special evening, before we begin tonight i would like to say a few words about the museum. The museum of jewish heritage is the leading New York Institution dedicated to fighting antisemitism and bigotry rated for more than years, the museum has challenged his visitors intellectually, rigorous to understand the ways in which dehumanization of the people can evolve to deeply destructive and. Engaging with history, people of all ages and backgrounds is our mission to never forget into combat and then power and endorsed to this day, if youre interested in in receiving any information about upcoming events, please join our mailing list. A sign in sheet can be found at the admissions desk. I also invite you to become a member of the museums community. We are honored to have you with us tonight to celebrate the hollow cost survivor author max eisen. At 16 mr. Max eisen was saved by death by a polish physician who employed him as a cleaner and is operating room. Mr. Max eisen 2016 memoir, chronicles his remarkable persistent liberation and continued healing after miraculously surviving. By chance alone receives top literary award in 2019. And tonight we celebrate launch of the books american addition, we have the privilege of hearing mr. Max eisen in conversation with veteran producer of 60 minutes, sherry. Maby chancealone. Impeachment coverage, at the conclusion of tonights program, we invite you to join max eisen by a book signing and is available for purchase, an art museum shop. We are honored to be joined tonight by acting counsel general of the canadian counselor in new york, mark gordon, executive Committee Member of the usc foundation for the counselor, la rubenstein, National Director of march of the living in canada, Phyllis Greenberg heideman, president of the International Market of the living. And aviva with guitarist. And we would like to thank our partners in planning and presenting tonights Program International march of the living, when counselor general of canada in new york, hangover square pressure in the usc Show Foundation. And before we begin, please take a moment to silence your cell phone and to avoid any obstruction during the program. Thank you and now please join me in welcoming our first speaker tonight, acting canadian, counsel general. [applause]. Host thank you rita. Basically, it was not held up by the impeachment hearings in washington. Speaking in native tongue. An incredible honor it is to be here with all of you tonight pay tribute to a truly remarkable man. In an extraordinary canadian printed mr. Max eisen. Since we learned that his incredible story, my team is the consul general has been seeking an opportunity to bring him to new york. I have to say the firm man of his age, he has a very busy schedule and it was not easy to get him here. Thank you max for joining us thank you to hanover press, and foundation and international march of the living in the museum the jewish heritage for bringing back here this evening to tell a story. As a diplomat, had many incarnations, i spent time and lot of time in europe in one of the most memorable opportunities for me as a family was to visit holland and traveling with my family and my son and to see and share with them tragedies, the horrors the legacy. I am deeply and profoundly inspired by the courage of the Holocaust Survivors who despite the death of the people they faced in the complexity of their emotions, understand the whole cost, needs to be real for those who are not there. To reconcile the unspeakable horrors with the enduring faith in humanity. Canada has been profoundly shaped by the proximate 40000 Holocaust Survivors who settled in our country after the holocaust. And i must add, canada has acknowledged the devastating results of her own action and apathy towards jews in the north sierra. When 1939, jewish refugees on board the st. Louis were turned away and for which are Prime Minister issued a formal apology in our house of commons in november of 2018. The lessons of the holocaust are clear the need to be repeated and as he had said, never again is not a phrase. Khawar is a promise to stand up to the dangers of hatred and discrimination and the irreversible consequences of inaction and indifference. As a new yorker, we know all too well, and the recent horrific antisemitic attacks right here in new york rated made it all too clear, is not yet run its course of this earth pretty we must be vigilant, because we also know is that the modern tools to promote hate are infinitely more sophisticated than the radio newspaper and film. Speaking with my colleagues in learning i am inspired by whoever saves a single life saves an entire world. Given the Ripple Effect of maxs unyielding commitments to educate, the younger generations about the dangers of racism and bigotry, i think we can say my saving max, he saved much more than one. The opportunity to hear a firsthand account from a survivors becoming increasingly rare. Im so honored to be with you all here this evening to hear max share his story. I hope we will all be here tonight with a heightened sense of duty to condemn intolerance and defend human rights in our everyday lives. Please join me in welcoming aviva, daughter of a holocaust survivor and a senior cancer at the congregation. Aviva travel date with mr. Max eisen in the march of the living where she conducted the Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony. Aviva will be joined and accompanied by a grammy awardwinning guitarist his parents were Holocaust Survivors and he lost many members of his family and the holocaust. I think you all and look forward to a wonderful evening. [applause]. Good evening, is an incredible honor to be here in a sing in this wonderful event and tribute to max eisen. One of the most remarkable people i have ever met. I had the privilege of traveling with max on the 2015 march of the living when i lead march of the living choir that year. And so this evening i would like to share with you a few of the songs that the students and i sang on that very moving trip read i would like to invite my colleague in different, rubenstein to introduce and give context to the song that im voicing. Host [laughter]. Host good evening. She walked along the shores of the mediterranean in the land of israel, and 1940s. She was born in hungary in 1921, but because of the antisemitism, she experienced in her youth, she emigrated to palestine in 1939 deal build a jewish state. She later returned to offering to fight against the but was cut to torture executed by the on november 7th 1944. She left us with a remarkable poem. His words remind us of the beauty of nature. The sand and sea and the rush of the waters, the thundering of heaven. And she was robbed far too early in her young life read [singing in native tongue]. The lord my god, i pray that these things never end. And the sea, the rush of the waters, the crash of the heavens, the rush of the waters the prayers of the heart. [singing in native tongue]. [singing in native tongue]. [applause]. Host every time we sing the song month in the very place the hitler sought to destroy the jewish people, we know that the spirit, the values in the lessons, essential that life represents can use of the dog. That weight were making a statement, hitler do you did not win pretty we are here year after year seeing the words that you try to annihilate. Our next song flicks it sent similar sentiment written in the 12 century bike in the words express undying relief the oneday redemption will come to humanity. They choose recited these very words of the last breaths and they were simply be that november day could arrive. [singing in native tongue]. [singing in native tongue]. [singing in native tongue]. [singing in native tongue]. [singing in native tongue]. [applause]. Host inc. You. It is now my pleasure to invite a member of the executive committee of counselors, he will now share with us the project within the foundation and the march of the living involving the testimony. [applause]. Max on the behalf of this foundation, im grateful to be here tonight to honor and celebrate max eisen in the release of his memoir here in the u. S. What to think our colleagues at hanover press for publishing and making this work so widely available and want to think the museum of jewish heritage for hosting tonights events in the council general, of canada for the long support and involveme involvement. And we want to think the international march of the living or the partnership between the international march of the living and usc Show Foundation including us in this nice event tonight. The usc foundation began working with max and his family in 2019 through this partnership with the international march of the living. Together these organizations have a joint project and together the testimony of Holocaust Survivors and 360degree video method in the authentic original locations. Together, we are working with at least ten survivors as they take us from a journey from their hometown to a site of liberation entering their unique and personal stories. Mark they were in these places were the experience them. Individually these testimonies will be deeply integrated into the programs and experiences created by the march of the living. Max is one of four survivors so far who have participated and have been filled on location. Our team traveled to the museum for a date as he shared his story with us and with his son, and he was on the march for the first time. We traveled to different places in his hometown. This is where max recalled his childhood and invited us to share in what was likely have told his last goodbye to his hometown. It was vibrant prewar Jewish Community that now exists only through him. This community will not be forgotten thanks to his 361 location interviews the living details that he so generously included in his memoirs. This is all in addition to the foundation of having not one but two life history interviews of him in our visual street archives both were reported in the 1990s, one is taken by the foundation and one filmed by the Holocaust Education center. Both are accessible through the visual history archives that testimony, is among the 55000 survivor testimonies that are now accessible or available through over 160 universities museums on Six Continents around the world. There is of course, this book which is what we are here to celebrate today rated as i understand it, max did not always was to tell the story. That prologue to the book, he talks about the fact that when he first spoke about holocaust and his experiences, and the high school in toronto, he was very nervous and said he would not do it again. I think this is a very common reaction among survivors at that time if i tell a personal story, i to have an informix or had enough of max who survived and emigrated to toronto where he built a family and live the life. I visited my uncle max in the summer of 1990. Shortly after maybe a month or two after i had been on trip to Easton Europe and i had visited there have dinner, i told him i troubles and he asked me, maybe two or three questions about what i had seen there. And after dinner, his son harvey, my cousin was 34 years old at the time, said to me, you know in my entire life that is the most have ever heard my father talk about his experiences. Then i said what you think that is. In a simple, his attitude is what would be the point. Who would listen. It would just be complaining to our children. Or to my children. Is everything, as individuals all here incredibly we are indebted to organizations like the u. S. Show foundation and like the international march of the living. And like the museum of jewish heritage and organizations like the hanover press. They have created, outlets for forum and a structure around hearing and learning the stories of survivors so they can be passed down so that we can learn from them and ultimately never again. Most importantly of course we are indebted to survivors like max, who did again and again. Countless colleges and universities, high schools, public events. I think his lead 21 trips to her he has educated and to adults who share these experiences in addition to giving his testimony. And participating in the 363 video with the march of the living. And of course, for publishing this memoir. I would like to share with you a short video shows behind the scenes of our time with max and his son ed and we found the 360degree video that will be incorporated into the march of the livings programs and in that you can see the intensity which max custom bennett himself telling the story. [background sounds]. Max its eyes been a difficult thing to express his feelings. There is always been avoided there. An image you cannot get to coming you cannot access that part of him. Hes able to speak to strangers more so in ways, and expressing feelings and again to his own family. So thats one of my reasons for coming here is to see what this opportunity to break through some of that. The children how us to show the stories and go right by we were filming. So were going to manage that interruptions and noise. But as part of what is happened here. We would like to tell maxs story. Max host i couldnt have any bad thoughts in your head, we had to only thing of survival. And then you came back, and really they down in your bed. [inaudible]. You just kept thinking about survival. I am so happy that were here. Host wouldve i ever thought it would have a family. Never. I wouldve never thought they would walk out of your life. And i have a family. [applause]. Host and i would like to invite backup the National Director for the living of the march. [applause]. Host thank you mark. I am honored to be able to use the main part of our program and we are about to talk with. [inaudible]. Himself. Ive been traveling with him for over 20 years now. Anytime im continued to be inspired by his courage and eloquence. At queens university, near thousand violent, for weekend conference training our educators and chaperones traveling with us to mileti with the march of the living. And as we are milling about the reception area a group of quaint students passed by. They notice one of her staff was hearing escrow. In the age of five books of moses written on hand by parchment and the jewish people read publicly from thousands of years. In observing curious look and student spaces, max patiently explained to them what the scrolls represented. He concluded his speech by informing that during the holocaust, the burned thousands of works just like this when they were looking at right now. He is reminded the students they burned books and also burned people. This bill found students were mesmerized during maxs short speech and only reluctantly tore themselves away to return their schools activities produce at the moment that i realized that max wasnt born a teacher. A natural educator with both the desire and ability to share a story and the lessons of the holocaust the most diverse audiences in the christmas accessible manner. In that moment of teaching as you heard, something max is replicated nearly countless times in his crisscross canada, sharing his story of love and loss with thousands upon thousands of people for the last 20 or more years. And it comes from the same part of europe is max, once in something of month the following lines printed to be a jew after the holocaust have every reason to give up your belief in god. And to abandon your trust in all humanity. You have every reason to give up the jewish people and abandon your trust in all humanity but still not to do so. In max like so many other survivors we know, perfectly exemplifies the sentiment. And despite having every reason to do so, max did not abandon his faith or give up on humanity and city continues to dedicate literally every day of his life roundtheclock to teaching lessons to old and young the law like double it will never happen again. Max reminds us of the quote. If you believe the world can be broken, also believe it can be fixed. If you believe the world can be broken, also believe it can be fixed. So thank you max from the bottom of all of our hearts for not giving into despair and for not giving up on the world even though you had every reason to do so indeed. You are all the better for it. [applause]. In a moment i would like to invite to the stage, my teacher, my hero my mentor, max eisen. He will be interviewed by 60 minutes, currently producing a segment on his life and sharing your she is very familiar with the story. Max and sherry please. [applause]. Sherry so i am the substitute i do not do this for a living so please be understanding. Leslie is really sad not to be here. She was a huge fan of maxs and really wanted to do this. Was not able to get him to a flight back early enough to be here. So youve got me so max, when we start by talking a little bit about your life and what do we start by or at the beginning of your life. Before these horrors pretty tell us a little bit about your family, relive, we knew was czechoslovakia and became part of a break but what was your life is now, how many family before the war. Max czechoslovakia, we were there for years. The president , we considered him as a grandfather. And i live in a town of about 5000 people. We jews were about 10 percent of the population. Approximately 90 jewish families read and i would 99 percent of these families were jews. And there were Small Business people, farmers, and in my town there were doctors. Jewish dentist. Jewish butcher in a bigger and a beautiful jewish synagogue. In school, jewish bull and wanted in a cancer and a rabbi, and is amazing looking at toronto wears very difficult to get into. This was a beautiful Jewish Community. But i in a large dwelling with my maternal grandparents and my uncle. Many jewish people lived with extended families read that it a wonderful way of growing up. Imagine so many people would be taking care of you. And i was going by and i would have the best cooking. Sherry because you are all literally in the same home printed. Max is a large house and we lived in the front part. We had my mothers kitchen, we had a stove. And we had bedrooms, every bedroom had a fireplace. And they were made up of tiles, ceramic tiles. And there was no running water. We had a well in the yard. Get a Beautiful House. We had an outhouse. I had two younger brothers. In the center of the house was my maternal grandparents. My grandmother had her own