NCJW GRS partners With Lane Dworkin Authors + Innovators Festival: My Involuntary Journeys by Hanna Temkin

NCJW GRS will community partner with the Lane Dworkin Authors + Innovators Festival for a Brown Bag Lunch and Learn on Tuesday, November 12th at noon. My Involuntary Journeys: A Memoir, by Hanna Temkin, is a story of a life journey through some of the most difficult episodes of the 20th Century. It depicts the author’s escape from Poland to the Soviet Union as the Nazi’s invaded in 1939, her life in the Soviet Union during the Holocaust and WWII, her return to Poland and then having to flee again in 1968 as a result of an antisemitic campaign instigated and fueled by the Polish government.   In her book, Hanna shares her story for the first time, shedding light on lesser-known aspects of Jewish life and survival in Eastern Europe before, during, and after the Holocaust. Moreover, Hanna’s story is an inspiring tale of female empowerment and serves as a testament to her ability to overcome the worst odds. 

Hanna’s daughter, Helena Temkin-Greener, will read passages from her mother’s book, and there will be time for discussion and a Q&A. Helena was born in Warsaw, Poland and left the country as a teenager in 1968, together with her family, fleeing the antisemitic campaign unleashed by the Polish government after the Six-Day Arab-Israeli war of 1967. Helena has been a Rochester, NY resident since 1977.  She is a Professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry.                    

Visit the Lane Dworkin Authors + Innovators Festival website for more information and to register. Plan to bring your own lunch or stop by Fox’s at the JCC before the talk.

———————