San Marino Holocaust Survivor Honored at State Capitol

San Marino resident Hava Ben-Zvi, who was a 12-year-old girl during the Nazi occupation of Poland, was honored at the California State Capitol Monday as part of California Holocaust Memorial Week, according to a press release from ’s office.

“I was honored to have Hava Ben-Zvi be a part of this year’s Holocaust Memorial Ceremony,” said Assemblyman Eng, who represents San Marino and other San Gabriel Valley cities, in the release. “Hava is an amazing woman who lived through one of the most difficult times in human history and she has been active in sharing her experiences to educate others about Jewish culture and history.”

When Nazis rounded up and killed the Jews in her village, Ben-Zvi found shelter at a friend’s home for the day and then traveled between villages before getting to an orphanage where the director housed her for about two years. She was then sent to a nearby farm where she stayed until the end of the war.

Ben-Zvi's Legacy

Ben-Zvi has dedicated much of her life preserving the memory of the Holocaust and the Jewish culture. She served 27 years as the director of the Jewish Community Library of Los Angeles and has published several works highlighting Jewish culture and literature.

Ben-Zvi’s most recent work Portraits of Literature: The Jews of Poland, An Anthology, was nominated as a finalist for the 2011 National Jewish book awards. The book was a three-year effort that resulted in a collection of 56 short stories, eyewitness accounts, poetry, essays folk tales and humor.

The book helps preserve the rich literature of Polish Jewry before, during and after World War II while bringing it to the attention of a new generation of readers, noted Eng’s office. It also highlights the remarkable actions taken by non-Jews to protect their Jewish neighbors from Nazis during the Holocaust.

California Holocaust Memorial Week

Every year for the past nine years the California Legislature, in recognition of California Holocaust Memorial Week that occurs in April or May, hosts a Holocaust Survivor Memorial Ceremony in Sacramento as part of the Holocaust Memorial Project.

The ceremony honors men and women who lived through the Holocaust and helps raise voices against genocidal violence.

The project involves students who interview survivors and WWII veterans involved in the liberation of concentration camps during the Holocaust to understand and record their experiences. This year Pasadena City College student Sam Felman interviewed Ben-Zvi for the project.

Do you know Hava Ben-Zvi? Share your thoughts about her in the comments.