In having the courage to share their testimony, Holocaust survivors provide a human dimension to understanding the past and present, enabling us to learn, reflect and never forget.

On April 14, Holocaust survivor Eric Blaustein will present “Growing Up in Germany: A Survivor Remembers” as part of this year’s Holocaust Service of Remembrance and Lecture at Elmhurst University.

Born in Germany, Blaustein started school in 1933, the same year Adolf Hitler became chancellor. At age 18, Blaustein was sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp, where he was imprisoned until the Allied liberation in 1945.

He went on to work as an engineer, get married and raise a family in the U.S. He is the father-in-law of Rabbi Steven Bob, who is Elmhurst University’s Jewish chaplain, served for many years as senior rabbi of Congregation Etz Chaim in Lombard, and is a co-founder of the University’s Holocaust Education Program.

During his talk at Elmhurst, Blaustein will share his personal history, reflecting on his youth in Nazi Germany, surviving Buchenwald, and what it has meant for his life ever since.

The Holocaust Service of Remembrance and Lecture begins at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 14, in the Frick Center, Founders Lounge. Admission is free but reservations are encouraged, at elmhurst.edu/cultural.

The Holocaust Service of Remembrance and Lecture is a highlight of the Holocaust Education Program, which for more than 30 years has considered the events and lessons of the Holocaust, as well as their ties to the modern world. Previous lecturers include Holocaust survivor, author and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel; historian Deborah Lipstadt; author Erik Larson; filmmaker and author Howard Reich; USC Shoah Foundation leader Stephen Smith; and many others.

The Holocaust Service of Remembrance and Lecture and other cultural programming at Elmhurst University support community engagement and lifelong learning, and prepare our students to thrive as adaptive leaders. For more information, email [email protected].