A TEACHER’S JOURNEY INTO THE HOLOCAUST 

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Saratoga Jewish Cultural Festival, with a generous grant from the Jewish Federation of Northeastern New York and sponsored by Temple Sinai of Saratoga Springs, presents an evening with Matthew Rozell, author of A Train Near Magdeburg. The book reveals a teacher’s journey into the Holocaust and the reunions it inspired some 70 years later. The program will be offered at Temple Sinai, 509 Broadway, Saratoga Springs, and on Zoom. (Note: some earlier promotions incorrectly listed the time as 5:30 pm; it is 7 pm.)

A Train Near Magdeburg is the true story behind an iconic photograph taken when American soldiers liberated a death train deep in the heart of Nazi Germany. It also brings to life the story of a dedicated high school history teacher who reunited hundreds of Holocaust survivors and their children with the American soldiers who rescued them.

In A Train Near Magdeburg, Rozell reconstructs a lost chapter from the closing days of World War II. In April 1945, a train crammed with Jews left Bergen Belsen. After seven days of shuttling on the tracks, the train stopped in a forest, hiding for cover from Allied planes. U.S. Tank Battalion 743 happened upon the train, and
Major Clarence Benjamin stood and snapped the now famous photograph as the Americans liberated the Jews inside.

According to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the train carried about 2,500 concentration camp inmates, primarily Jewish. Many died during transit. This train, one of three that left Bergen-Belsen between April 6 and 10, was bound for A Train Near Magedeburg, Theresienstadt. Only one train arrived in Theresienstadt; the third was liberated by Soviet forces outside of Troebitz.

Rozell reconstructs the story, drawing on eyewitness accounts, survivor testimony, memoirs, wartime reports, and personal letters. He weaves together a chronology of the Holocaust as it unfolds across Europe and retraces the steps of the survivors and the American soldiers who freed them.

Rozell’s work resulted in reunions of the two groups on three continents, seven decades later. He offers his unique perspective on the lessons of the Holocaust for
future generations and the impact that one person, a teacher, can make.

About the Author
Matthew Rozell was born in 1961 and raised in Hudson Falls, NY with his four siblings, all acclaimed writers. As a kid, he roamed the banks of the Hudson looking for
lost encampments of past heroes and historic battle sites.

Rozell graduated from Hudson Falls High School. He attended SUNY Geneseo and received his BA in 1983 and an MS in 1988 before returning to teach at his high school. He was named a Distinguished Alumni Educator by SUNY Geneseo. Over the next 30 years, Rozell taught every subject in the social studies department, specializing in the history of World War II. He created an oral history program that became the catalyst for his writings. During summers, he ran archaeology field courses along the Hudson. Rozell has received numerous honors, awards, and fellowships for his work on the Holocaust and human rights.

Pre-registration for this program is required. To register for the panel discussion in person or on Zoom, go to
https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/sl/DaOhZ1H/Magdeburg

 

$10 donation requested