POWAY, Calif. (KGTV) – A 100-year-old Holocaust survivor will speak Thursday night at the Chabad of Poway, exactly four years to the day after a shooting at the synagogue killed one person and injured three others.
Joseph Alexander was 16 years old when the Nazis invaded his hometown in Poland. He spent the next six years in 12 different concentration camps before being liberated on May 2, 1945.
Now, he speaks about hope and faith in the face of antisemitism.
Tuesday night, he brought that message to the San Diego Public Library, telling a packed auditorium that it’s important to remember the lessons of the past. But he says it’s also important to keep a sense of joy and hope alive, no matter what happens.
His appearance at Chabad of Poway Thursday will be especially poignant, as that synagogue was the site of one of San Diego’s most recent violent, antisemitic attacks.
On April 27, 2019, a gunman walked into the synagogue while the congregation was holding services for the last day of Passover. He shot four people before security stopped the rampage.
One woman, Lori Kaye, was killed. The Rabbi at the time, Yisroel Goldstein, was also injured.
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Goldstein’s son, Mendel, is now the Rabbi at the synagogue. He says they specifically invited Alexander to speak tonight as a way to mark the anniversary, and also to stand up to hate.
“It’s important to remember what happened,” says Rabbi Goldstein. “And also to remember who we are, and that, despite the challenges and difficulties that we went through, we only become prouder and stronger from those experiences. Realizing that, indeed, there may be those that choose to do evil, choose to do wrong. We all have the free choice to do right and to do good.”
Thursday night's presentation at Chabad of Poway is free and open to the public. For security reasons, organizers ask anyone who wants to attend to register at this link.
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