"The Fourth"

“The Fourth”

By Alex Kor

“What are you doing on the Fourth? Do you have any big plans on the 4th?” On July 4^th, America celebrates its 247th birthday. As we all recall from our history classes, in 1776, the Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence. Since the American colonies no longer wanted to be ruled by Great Britain, the United States of America was established. Today, we celebrate by having parades, barbecues, attending fairs and carnivals, and watching fireworks.  

But, other events also occurred on July 4^th:

·        On this day in 1802, The United States Military Academy at West Point opened.

·        On this day in 1939, Lou Gehrig, the baseball hall of famer, was officially retired from the game in a public ceremony at Yankee Stadium.

·        On this day in 1941, the Great Choral Synagogue in Riga, Latvia (my father’s hometown) was burnt by the NAZIs killing 300 Jews.

·        On this day in 1964, the Beach boys’ song “I Get Around” reaches #1.

·        On this day in 1966, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Freedom of Information Act.  

Unfortunately, another event occurred on a July 4^th.  That is, today is the 4^th anniversary of one of the saddest days of my life. At exactly 7:11 AM in Krakow, Poland, on July 4^th, my mother passed away in our hotel room. Despite furious efforts by the paramedics, our nurse, and friends, my mom died in my arms. The number of times that I have re-lived this morning is countless, and the “what-ifs” still consume me. Nevertheless, life goes on! 

Rather than again dwell on the morning of July 4^th in Krakow again, I would like to tell you how my mother spent her last full day on this earth. On the morning of July 3, 2019, while the remainder of the CANDLES Holocaust Museum left to tour Auschwitz, my mother rested in her hotel room.  At approximately 11:15 AM, she traveled to Auschwitz II (Birkenau) to join the group. As she approached the entrance to Birkenau to start the tour, a group of approximately 20 young men from the Young Men’s Ensemble of the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus were assembled. As the person responsible for my mom’s schedule, I was approached by their conductor, Dr. Steven Kronauer, “Alex, we are here to sing to your mom, Eva”. Puzzled, I responded, “Well, I am not sure that we have time. We are kind of on a schedule.” Seeing these well-dressed young men wearing uniform shirts with the embroidered words, “LA Children’s Chorus”, I was convinced to allow for this impromptu concert to begin. Having been to Auschwitz well over 20 times, I had never seen a Holocaust survivor being serenaded at the death camp.  

As my mom car pulled up and she began to get situated in her electric cart, the young men under the direction of Dr. Kronauer began to sing a Yiddish song, “Shtiler, Shtiler” (Quiet, Quiet). She interrupted them, and said, “Can you sing my favorite song, To Dream the Impossible Dream, from the Man of LaMancha?” The response was, “Well Eva, some of us may not know that song”. My mom said,” You can sing with me”.  And they did.  As the Young Men’s Ensemble completed my mom’s initial request, a huge crowd was gathering in front of the iconic guard tower.  Next, the young men sang their pre-prepared music, and there was not a dry eye amongst the onlookers. In fact, many told me that the harmonic music sounded like angels singing.  At the conclusion of the “concert”, my mom took pictures with the young men and commenced with the afternoon CANDLES Holocaust Museum tour of Birkenau. The remainder of the day and night was uneventful. We returned to our hotel, had dinner and my mother went to sleep.  

So, on my mom’s last day on this earth, July 3^rd, she had a great and fulfilling day. She was able to eat chicken nuggets minutes from a camp where a piece of bread was at one time a feast, most likely positively influenced 20 young men from Los Angeles, and their conductor and was able to do what she loved the most: educate the world on the Holocaust and her life lessons.

How many of us can live each day with a purpose, even to our dying day? As we think about the past and realize that the world has not changed for the better in the last four years, I want to leave you with some of my mom’s words. In March 2019, my mother penned what would be one of her last speeches. She wanted to present it at what would be the 75^th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz on January 27, 2020:  

“I am here today to declare that despite these vivid memories, we all still have much work to do. Much of the world around us is in turmoil with hate crimes and anti-Semitic violence at a level not seen since World War II. It is, in part, due to the current world situation, that my active responsibility to share my memories in an effort to educate the world, with the hope that this education will keep another Auschwitz from happening, feels more urgent than ever.” 

As you celebrate this glorious day in the USA, I request that you also remember, my mother and father, Eva and Mickey Kor, their work, their love and allegiance to the USA, and their life lessons on this day. May their memories and legacy forever be a blessing to us all.  And, as we remember my late parents on this day and as the son of two loving and incredible parents who were both Holocaust survivors, I would like to borrow a line from Lou Gehrig’s famous speech 84 years ago today,  

“Today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth!” 

Happy 4^th!