Special Cameo Presentation by 3G Sousa Mendes Visa Recipient

On Sunday, November 29th at 4 pm ET as a part of the SMF Sunday Program "Searching for Sousa Mendes," architect Eric Moed, the grandson and great-grandson of Sousa Mendes visa recipients, will speak about the inspiration behind WTF: Work Towards Fairness (Click to view), the architectural installation he created at the Sousa Mendes ancestral home, the Casa do Passal, in central Portugal.

Eric Moed, 3G Sousa Mendes Visa Recipient

Eric, as well as his architect grandfather Leon Moed, are both featured in “…with God against Man…” this week’s featured film which recorded the SMF’s 2013 “Journey on the Road to Freedom.”

The program is FREE. REGISTRATION which ends on Nov. 27th is required. Click here.

A Holiday Gift of Inspiration! Special Offer - MY SISTER'S EYES with a Foreword by Dr. Mordecai Paldiel

To MEET Semyon Pinkhasov creator of the film “…with God against Man…” which follows the @SousaMendesFdn 2013 Journey on the Road to Freedom.

Illustration from My Sister’s Eyes

and HEAR Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, former Director of the Righteous Among the Nations department @YadVashem, speak about the auspicious meeting between Aristides de Sousa Mendes and Rabbi Chaim Kruger.

REGISTER for “Searching for Sousa Mendes.” the SMF Virtual Program, Sunday, November 29, 2020 - 4 p.m. ET

PLUS! Get the perfect holiday gift for a young person in your life - My Sister’s Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin.

Click here for a preview and to ORDER this large format 96-page book in full color.

Then SEND a message to info@mysisterseyes.com indicating how the author’s inscription should read and where to send it.

Joan Arnay Halperin, author of My Sister’s Eyes

Students in #Portugal Study MY SISTER'S EYES

Prof. Helena Romão brings the story of the Krakowiak family, Aristides de Sousa Mendes visa recipients, to her 9th grade English students in Figueira da Foz.

The author, Joan Arnay Halperin, answers students’ questions about the her family’s rescue via their dedicated class website and video chats.

Aristides de Sousa Mendes and the #Refugees of #WWII - Drew University Virtual Program

On Thursday, November 5, 2020 • 4:00 p.m. ET, in commemoration of Kristallnacht, Drew University will host Joan Halperin discussing her book My Sister’s Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II .

Sousa Mendes was the Portuguese Consul General in Bordeaux, France in 1940 who, in defiance of his government’s orders, issued thousands of visas to desperate refugees fleeing the Nazi invasion of Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France. 

This heroic feat was characterized by the Holocaust historian Yehuda Bauer as “perhaps the largest rescue action by a single individual during the Holocaust.”

To learn about this hero and one family that he saved, please click here: This program is FREE but registration is required.

"...with God against Man..." @SousaMendesFdn Virtual Sunday Programs

Sunday, November 29, 2020 - Sousa Mendes Foundation ‘s Virtual Sunday Program

This is a documentary about a Portuguese consul in Bordeaux, France, Aristides de Sousa Mendes, who in 1940, issued about thirty thousand visas to refugees f...

They were Searching for Sousa Mendes (Click here).

Not to be missed! A Semyon Pinkhasov Documentary #HolocaustRescuers #

“…with God against Man…” the Semyon Pinkhasov documentary which follows the Sousa Mendes Foundation’s Journey on the Road to Freedom will be available for the 1st time on Youtube in South America.

View testimony from Sousa Mendes grandchildren, visa recipients, and their families who were brought together in 2013 while “searching for Sousa Mendes.”

In this film, Pinkhasov interweaves compelling documentary footage with insights from Prof. Richard Weisberg, Avram Milgram, Manuela Franco, Baron Eric de Rothschild, among others.

Meet the filmmaker on Sunday, November 29th at 4:00 PM to learn about the ins and outs of the making of “…with God against Man..”

Pinkhasov will be interviewed by Joan Arnay Halperin, author of My Sister’s Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II who says, “My book was conceived on the 2103 “Journey on the Road to Freedom.”

Click here to register for this FREE Sousa Mendes Foundation Sunday Program.

SPECIAL OFFER - Give the gift of inspiration!  

My Sister’s Eyes, a 96-page full-color large-format book, is the perfect holiday gift for a young person - and adult - in your life! 

Pre-Order your signed and inscribed copy for a donation of $24.00 to the Sousa Mendes Foundation (free 1st class shipping included to any US address) CLICK HERE.
Then send a message to info@mysisterseyes.com indicating how the author’s inscription should read and where to send it.

In the meantime, stay safe!

"Ici Repose" A Time to Remember

Ici Repose
Notre Fillette Adorée
Yvonne Krakowiak
Née le 1 Juin 1938
Décédée le 4 Juin 1942
Enfant Unique de
Halina et Ignace Krakowiak

Orange Street Cemetery - Kingston, Jamaica, British West Indies, 1942

Finding Yvonnes’ Grave June 2014

Aristides de Sousa Mendes and the Refugees of World War II - @DrewUniversity via Zoom - Thursday, Nov.5, 2020 • 4 p.m. ET

This program is FREE - registration is required, click here.

In commemoration of Kristallnacht, Joan Halperin will discuss her book My Sister’s Eyes, the story of her family’s escape from Belgium in June of 1940.
Her family members survived thanks to Aristides de Sousa Mendes, a Portuguese Consul who issued visas to Jews and others fleeing Nazi Germany during WWII. 

Pg. 31 My Sister’s Eyes

Excerpt from My Sister’s Eyes:

One Step Ahead of the Bombs - La Panne, Belgium, Friday, May 10, 1940

Thousands of desperate people were now amassed on the Belgian coast. They believed that they would be protected, that the enemy could never penetrate the Maginot Line. But they were worried.
And then their turn came. Ignas and Hala were awoken before dawn by roaring motors. Incredulous, they watched from their balcony as billowing German parachutes streamed down like giant white teardrops.
Stunned by the force of the blitzkrieg, all they could do as they waited for Ignas’ brother and his wife to join them, was to listen to news reports …

To purchase your autographed copy with a personal dedication by the author - available in the U.S.A. ONLY - at the Sousa Mendes Foundation Store, click here.

"HK" Initials Embossed on a Silver Ladies Compact #Portugal 11 - 8 - 941

"HK" stands for Hala Krakowiak whose initials are embossed on the cover of this silver compact and the date “11-8-941,” Hala and Ignas’ sixth wedding anniversary is engraved on the inside cover.

They had received visas to safety from Aristides de Sousa Mendes in June of 1940 and were still residing in Figueira da Foz in 1941.

So, who gave Hala this beautiful anniversary gift? Not Ignas. He depended on money from the “Joint,” the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, to take care of his family’s daily needs.

The only logical conclusion is that Signor Alberto Malafaia, the Figueirense who befriended the Krakowiaks, gifted this compact to Hala.

This same exceptional man gave Ignas a silver letter opener with an emblem of the Knights Hospitaller in white on red cloisonné on its handle - also engraved “11- 8 - 941”, and a silver bracelet with the four seasons design, engraved “Yvonne Portugal 942” to their daughter.

This is a replica of Yvonne’s bracelet which the writer regrets has been misplaced.

Ignas Krakowiak (left) with Alberto Malafaia who bonded over their mutual love of sports at Portugal dos Pequenitos, Coimbra, circa 1940-41.

Krakowiak Family with Portuguese Friend Alberto Malafaia

Never before seen photos of the Krakowiak family in Portugal, posted to Facebook courtesy of Dores do Carmo at DEVER de MEMÓRIA-Projeto UNESCO AECS (Click on photos to see descriptions).

See the Hala and Ignas Krakowiak with Zosia and Hipek Krakowiak (Ignas’s brother and sister-in-law) and friends in popular places around Figueira da Foz.

Follow Yvonne as she struts around in the Minho dress loaned to her by Sr. Alberto Malafaia for Carnival Day 1941, and Yvonne with local and refugee friends.

Excursions:

Portugal dos Pequenitos - Coimbra, Bussaco Palace - Coimbra, Cascais and gave them parting gifts.

Postcards to Portugal from Hala’s family in the Warsaw Ghetto.

A Tribute to Sousa Mendes Visa Recipient Yvonne Krakowiak

Inspired by the story of My Sister’s Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During world War II, Portuguese students under the expert direction teachers at the Aristides de Sousa Mendes UNESCO School in Carregal do Sal create a tribute to Sousa Mendes visa recipient Yvonne Krakowiak.

Here are their signatures in the photo attached.

AMIGOS DE ARISTIDES E ANGELINA DE SOUSA MENDES Blog by Mariana Abrantes

This blog post in AMIGOS DE ARISTIDES E ANGELINA DE SOUSA MENDES informs the reader of an upcoming program under the auspices of MEMOSHOÁ  AND YAD VASHEM.

On July 14th, 2020 at 18h  WEST (Portugal) Dores Fernandes and Josefa Reis, teachers at the UNESCO  Dever de Memória project, Aristides de Sousa Mendes School and graduates of Yad Vashem’s International School for Holocaust Studies will present a pedagogical exploration of Moshe Haelion's documentary and Joan Arnay Halperin 's book,  My Sister 's Eyes. 

To participate  please download the  flyer  with the complete program and follow the  link  for registration:  

https://www.dge.mec.pt/sites/default/files/Noticias_documentos/portugal_zoom_lecture_pdf.pdf

Sousa Mendes Square located near @yadvashem in Jerusalem #HolocaustEdu

The street sign in Hebrew, Arabic and English, and reads:

“Aristides de Sousa Mendes Square, Consul General of Portugal in Bordeaux (France), saved thousands of Jews during the years 1939-40.” Jerusalem, Israel.

Sousa Mendes saved thousands of Jews and thousands of other desperate refugees. The major part of his heroic action took place in May and June of 1940.

Dr. Mordecai Paldiel in his position as Director of the “Righteous Among the Nations” Department at Yad Vashem was responsible for recognizing Sousa Mendes and other diplomat rescuers.

He planted the tree to commemorate Sousa Mendes’ action in 1986.

This map drawn by Dr. Paldiel, indicates the position of “Kikar Aristides de Sousa Mendes” (orange box) in Kiriat HaYovel, Jerusalem.

ZOOM with DEVER de MEMÓRIA - July 14, 2020 - Sousa Mendes @UNESCO School #Portugal @yadvashem

My Sister’s Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II
Memo Shoah - Yad Vashem Zoom Seminar

Dores do Carmo and Josepha Reis teachers at the Aristides de Sousa Mendes UNESCO School - DEVER de MEMÓRIA-Project features My Sisters’ Eyes to teach about the Holocaust in a Zoom Seminar - July 14, 2020
Register:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIsfuCrrDIuEtSpX6NjifHGpkylDI_4bbAK

Deixamos o convite para no próximo dia 14 de julho pelas 18:00 participem numa Vídeoconferência (plataforma Zoom) promovida pela Memoshoá em parceria com o Yad Vashem. Enviamos em anexo o programa da sessão.
Para inscrição clicar em "registe-se com antecedência".
Inscrição:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIsfuCrrDIuEtSpX6NjifHGpkylDI_4bbAK

This is the last photo of Yvonne Krakowiak taken in Figueira da Foz, Portugal. She was born in Lodz, Poland on June 1, 1938 and died in Kingston, Jamaica on June 4, 1942.

@nytimes @RaphaelMinder - Portugal Honors a Diplomat Who Saved Jews From the Nazis

When she signed up for the Sousa Mendes Foundation’s ‘Journey on the Road to Freedom’ Joan Arnay Halperin arranged to meet the daughter and grandchildren of the Portuguese man who had befriended her parents during the time they were stranded in Figueira da Foz (June 1940 - January 1942).

In preparation, she created a rudimentary photo album as a gift. Several journey participants remarked, “How did you get all these photos? We have nothing like this,” when they saw the photos of her parents’ life in pre-Holocaust Europe and their time in Portugal.

Joan’s response was to create My Sister’s Eyes .

Read New York Times: Portugal Honors Diplomat Who Saved Jews from Nazis June 18, 2020

Photo Credit: Joao Pedro Marnoto for The New York Times

This photo was taken in June of 2013 when “Journey on the Road to Freedom” participants stopped in Cabanas di Viriato to pay homage to Aristides de Sousa Mendes the man who saved their lives or the lives of their parents. Photo Credit: Joao Pedro Marnoto for The New York Times

On Being Jewish in Jamaica, British West Indies - 1942 #WWII #Refugees

“Ema - The Heart and Soul of Jewish Jamaica”*

features the charming Evelyn Matalon, beloved mother of David Matalon and Ainsley Henriques, speaking to her granddaughter Anna Ruth Henriques on the occasion of her 100th birthday. (Click here)

In November 2017, Dr. Diana Cooper-Clark arranged a reunion for WWII refugees who had been evacuated to Gibraltar Camp in Kingston, Jamaica, BWI starting in February 1942.

Compassionate participants gathered within the walls of the Orange Street Cemetery to say Kaddish, the Jewish prayer for the dead, for Yvonne, Hala Krakowiak’s first child, who died at the age of four years old at the camp in June 1942. (Click here).

In subsequent years, Hala told Joan her second child about the generosity of the Jamaican Jewish Community, in particular, the Matalon and Henriques families during the time she and Ignas awaited visas to enter the United States (February 8, 1942 - October 2, 1943).

Joan describes her feelings about her parents’ heart-wrenching experience to Amy Wachtel @NightNurse1Love who poses questions in the most delicate manner. (Click here)

*“Ema - The Heart and Soul of Jewish Jamaica” was compiled by the Team @CornerstoneJamaica, headed by Gary Robinson, for the Jewish Jamaican Heritage Project.

Participants: Dr. Diana Cooper-Clark, Ainsley Henriques, Margret Thompson, Robert Jacovitz - Chair of the Advisory Council - Sousa Mendes Foundation, Anna Ruth Henriques, Gary Robinson and his team, Amy Wachtel (without Aristotle), Kathyrn Cates and other dedicated people.

Interview with author of MY SISTER'S EYES on the 80th Anniversary of May 10, 1940 Invasion of the Low Lands

“In My Sister's Eyes we learn how the grand illusion Hala and Ignas Krakowiak’s charmed life is catapulted into the harsh reality of World War II.

The family’s perilous journey to safety in Portugal thanks to life-saving visas issued by Aristides de Sousa Mendes the ‘Angel of Bordeaux;’ their subsequent evacuation to an ‘island paradise’ and the personal tragedy that followed is a Holocaust tale quite unlike any other.“ - Barbara Wind, Holocaust Educator, JCC of Greater Metrowest, NJ

Click here: Dr. Miriam Klein Kassenoff interviews the author Joan Arnay Halperin

My Sister's Eyes at GALE In Context: World History @galecengage @alanews

Click: GALE.com in Context - World History to subscibe.

Learn about the rescue action that saved thousands of desperate refugees resulting from the chance meeting between Aristides de Sousa Mendes Portuguese Consul General of Portugal and the Polish Rabbi Chaim Kruger in the crowded streets of Bordeaux, France in June 1940.

May 10, 2020 - 80th Anniversary of the Nazi Invasion of the Low Lands #WWII #HolocaustEdu

FREE EVENT

Book Talk with the author of
My Sister’s Eyes

Joan Arnay Halperin discusses her book with
Dr. Miriam Klein Kassenoff

Sunday, May 10, 2020 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm ET

Click here: PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED

Click to view: Author’s mother, Hala Krakowiak Arnay, recounts memories of May 10, 1940 escape.

Click to BUY: My Sister’s Eyes (e-book or printed book)

"My Sister’s Eyes" at the #UNESCO School in Carregal do Sal, #Portugal

Click here: My Sister’s Eyes a student presentation and Q & A with the author Joan Arnay Halperin at the UNESCO School in Carregal do Sal, Portugal - video created by Josefa Reis, docent.

Projeto UNESCO "Dever de Memória - Jovens pelos direitos humanos (Duty to Remember - Young people for human rights)", do Agrupamento de Escolas de Carregal do Sal.