Page 60 - Witness

Sigmund Rolat – Gratitude to Those Who Saved Us
On Holocaust Remembrance Day 2015, Sigmund Rolat gave the keynote address in Birkenau following the March of the Living. Stating he would prefer not to have his painful memories in the first place, he articulated a number of reasons to remember the Holocaust: Solidarity with the victims, ensuring the victims’ memories live on, and prevention of future genocides. His fourth and final reason was gratitude toward the Righteous Among the Nations who risked their lives to save Jews during WWII. Rolat recalled his Polish nanny Elka who chose to remain in the ghetto (and perish in the Shoah) because she loved a Jewish child – himself.
Sigmund Rolat also gave a speech at the University of Warsaw to the March of the Living. In the presence of Righteous Among the Nations Czeslawa Zak, he spoke about his hope to build a monument to the Righteous Among the Nations, next to the Polin Museum.
“You have no idea how proud I am of you. I speak in the name of all my friends who cannot be here, who lost their lives...and I can tell you, they are also proud of you. After all, it’s we who say ‘Lador
Vador’ (From generation to generation).
“And our generation, and those after us, will always remember. You
will recall that, two days ago, I talked about four reasons to remem- ber. And the last reason I mentioned – perhaps I should repeat here, while Ms. Czeslawa Zak is with us. You see, we are going to build...a monument to honor Czeslawa, and to honor all those wonderful people, who at the risk of their lives, at the risk of their families [rescued others].
“We are very proud of the saying, ‘He who saves one life saves the world.’ Well, we will say thank you properly. And next year when you come here, and in years long, long from now, your children will come here and they will also see that monument – to thank those who saved us.”
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