Holocaust survivor shares experience
Moshe Baran of Pittsburgh talks about his experience during the Holocaust to students at Canon-McMillan High School Tuesday morning. Projected on a large screen behind Baran is an image of his wife, Malka, who is deceased, Daniel Love and Baran. Love made a documentary about Moshe, his wife and the Holocaust.
Moshe Baran of Pittsburgh talks about the Holocaust to students at Canon-McMillan High School on Tuesday.
CANONSBURG – The atrocities Moshe Baran witnessed happened decades ago, but the memories remain vivid in the 94-year-old’s mind.
Baran, a native of Poland, is a Holocaust survivor. In an effort to prevent further and future genocide, Baran willingly shares his story with anyone who will listen. On Tuesday, Baran’s audience included more than 400 Canon-McMillan High School students, who recently studied the Holocaust.
The day World War II ended, May 8, 1945, will forever stand out to Baran and his fellow survivors. While he hoped it “would be the war to end all wars,” the end of War World II now serves as a stepping stone.
After a brief explanation of Jewish history and some reasoning behind Adolf Hilter’s decision to eliminate those of the Jewish faith, Baran shared his experiences.
The Pittsburgh resident was born into a family of six in 1920 in the small town of Horodok. He had a normal childhood, and few complaints about his life until the Sept. 1, 1939, invasion of Poland by Germany. In 1941, his family was relocated to a ghetto, and Baran was sent to a labor camp, where he was forced to help construct a railway.
Baran said the ghetto was surrounded by barbed wire, and was “liquidated” in 1942.
“The able-bodied were separated from the group, and the women, children and elderly were placed onto trucks, taken to a barn and machine-gunned and set on fire.”
Baran, who was at the labor camp, said his family somehow managed to survive. He was reunited with them after he escaped from the labor camp to join the rebellion movement against the Germans.
Baran said his wife, Malka, who passed away several years ago, survived three years in a concentration camp. They met in Austria after the war, and eventually relocated to the United States. The pair starred in documentary, “A look in the Eyes of Resistance,” which was filmed in the late 2000s by then-high school student Daniel Love. The 35-minute documentary was played Tuesday.
Kimberly Gillis, a teacher at Canon-McMillan, said Baran’s presentation really “brought history to life.”
“It’s one thing to read about it in a book, but when you hear about it from someone, it really comes to life,” Gillis said. “It gives meaning to it on a whole new level.”
Allie Payne, a freshman who attended Baran’s presentation, said that hearing Baran tell his story made “everything more real.”
“You learn a lot more when you hear it from someone,” she said.
Freshman Bryn Dami agreed.
“He was very inspiring, and I learned a lot” she said. “This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”