JANUARY 27 • 2022 | 35
moved to Farmington Hills),
a library with archives was
an important part of his
plan. According to Weiss,
“He wanted documentation.”
Today the Zekelman
memorial book collection
is an important resource for
Holocaust survivors and their
children; individuals doing
genealogy research; as well
as students, researchers and
authors.
Cheri Eisenberg, a former
Detroiter who now lives in
Atlanta, explains that there
are two memorial books
for David-Horodok — one
published in 1957 in Israel
in Hebrew and Yiddish, and
another in English in the U.S.
in 1981.
The latter was published
with assistance from the
David-Horodok’s Women’s
Organization, then based in
Oak Park. The book includes
descriptions of pre-war life
from Eisenberg’s great aunt,
Anna Zemmol. Roz Blanck of
Franklin, who is active in the
local David-Horodok group,
has visited the town twice.
There are no Jews living
there now, she says. The town
has a Holocaust memorial
sculpture.
According to Weiss, new
information about the World
War II era continues to
be discovered. “Holocaust
history hasn’t ended yet,” she
says.
“What I am seeing is that
more and more individuals
and families are self-
publishing their own personal
memorial books for their
families in limited editions.
Our Museum Shop is proud
to feature these local survivor
personal narratives.”
Examples of memorial books from the Zekelman Holocaust Center’s
collection.
German Memorial Books
The Zekelman Holocaust Center has a very large col-
lection of memorial books published by German cities
and other organizations. Librarian/Archivist Faiga Weiss
says German-speaking volunteers helped the Holocaust
Center contact German cities and archives to locate
memorial books. They sent the books that they had pub-
lished at no charge. “The quality of the memorial books
was also exceptional. They listed the people who were
deported, their birthdates, where they were deported and
date of death. Some of the books actually traced survivors
and noted where they were currently living,” she says.
BY SHARI S. COHEN
Supported through the generosity of The Jewish Fund and the D. Dan and Betty Kahn Family Foundation.
Need to find
help during a
family crisis?
Call jhelp at
1-833-445-4357
or visit: jhelp.org
Your one-stop for support
from Jewish Detroit.