Annual Denver Holocaust Remembrance Event was on Sunday, May 5th, 2024, from 2-4pm Each spring, during the "Days of Remembrance", Remember 6 presents the Denver Holocaust Remembrance Event for the community where we honor all who have been impacted by the Holocaust; both victims and their families. Our featured speakers this year included David Zapiler and Barbara Steinmetz, both are Holocaust Survivors. This annual event takes place within a living Holocaust Memorial called: Babi Yar Park, 10451 E Yale Ave, Denver, CO 80231 Here is the footage from the 2024 Denver Holocaust Remebrance Event:
Holocaust Survivor, David Zapiler David Zapiler, was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1932 and was only 7 years old when Germany invaded Poland in 1939. His family fled his birth country to Russia where David's father thought they would be safer. They took refuge on a Russian Farm along with 18 other Jews who were attempting to escape the Nazis. Eventually, the Russians, transported the Zapiler family to a slave camp in Siberia where David's parents endured hard labor. David was able to attend school at the camp, sharing one teacher with 200 other children. He adapted quickly and learned Russian, his third language after Yiddish and Polish proving his brilliance, even at a young age. In 1942, when David was 10, his family was shipped to a kibbutz-like collective farm in Kazakhstan, to grow and harvest wheat, providing a more normal life for David. The Zapiler family eventually found their way to America where David's resilience continued. He attended the University of Illinois in Chicago where he underwent Management Training, studied English and Electrical Engineering. He was married to his first wife at the time, Paula Koladicki, with whom he had two daughters and a son. He had to drop out of college before obtaining a degree in order to support his young family yet his studies served him well as he became a Nursing Home Administrator for 7 Nursing Homes in the 1960s. He also added more languages to his repertoire, knowing a grand total of 6 different languages, allowing him to be an interpreter for County, State and Federal Courts. His other accomplishments are just as impressive, and include Master Mason, Arbitrator for the BBB (Better Business Bureau), Real Estate Developer and lecturer in the Holocaust. He has 4 children, 11 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren. He resides in Colorado with his wife Joan whom he married back in 1985. Though in his 90s, he remains physically active, enjoying golf and pickle-ball. His story is awe inspiring and a must to hear and his expansive family is an example of the power of Jewish life despite Hitlers attempt to squash it.
Holocaust Survivor, Barbara Steinmetz Barbara Steinmetz was born in Hungry on November 26th, 1936 to a comfortable family life. Her parents, ran a flourishing hotel on an island off the coast of Croatia, allowing her and her older sister to live an idyllic childhood. That all changed in the summer of 1938, when Jews across Europe saw a grave threat in the rise of the Nazi party and began making plans to leave their homelands to escape Hitler's grasp. By 1939, Barbara's parents left their lucrative hotel business, went back to Hungary to convince extended family members to leave the country with them, but they couldn't imagine things would get so bad....they were wrong. Barbara's family left Hungary for good in 1940, settling in Nice, France, but Hitler's threat followed them, forcing them to flee again by train to Barcelona, then Madrid and finally to Lisbon, Portugal. Barbara’s father sought desperately for asylum in 12 different countries but the only one accepting Jewish refugees was the Dominican Republic who would use them for hard labor. Barbara's family eventually made it to the United States, when Barbara was 9. Her parents took on menial jobs and moved from state to state to find better pay and more affordable living. The moving around was necessary for survival but it meant Barbara couldn't developed roots, nor establish lasting friendships. This changed after Barbara married Howard Steinmetz, moved to Saginaw, Michigan, had 3 beautiful daughters and settled for 50 years! Barbara and Howard moved to Boulder, Colorado in 2005 where they lived together until Howard's passing in 2010. This was the second loss within the Steinmetz family for just 10 months earlier, Barbara's daughter Ivy died of cancer. Despite these devastating losses, Barbara continued to be active in the Community, sharing her story at schools, churches, and community events. She writes articles about the Holocaust in news and media websites such as The Fulcrum and writes letters to government officials on the behalf of Jewish issues. Barbara is keeping her voice heard and emphasizes that “Silence is the enemy.” Stories like hers are heart wrenching but also filled with hope and the power of life. To hear these first hand accounts of the Holocaust creates in us the drive to combat the rise in anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial that we are seeing in our day! We will not be silent!