Note: I have no expectation that Steven Spielberg will read this or hear about it, but I want to put it out into the world. Of course, if any reader has a connection to him, please share it!
Dear Mr. Spielberg,
I am writing to thank you for creating the Shoah Visual History Foundation. It has been a gift to my family.
In August of 1995, the Bakst family gathered at the Pines Hotel in the Catskills to support Paula Bakst, née Silverfarb, and David Bakst as they gave their testimony about their experiences during the Holocaust. Each was interviewed separately. Our entire family was filmed as a coda to Paula’s presentation. Though it was painful for Paula and David to relive those memories, they viewed it as a responsibility to future generations and wanted it to serve as proof of the reality of the horror of the Holocaust.
In contrast to some survivors, Paula and David spoke of their experiences during the war before participating in the Shoah Foundation program. I am their daughter-in-law and joined the family in 1983. I heard stories piecemeal in the decade before their testimony. Their four children heard even more over the years, but it wasn’t a narrative. Being interviewed by a trained person helped to create a more complete picture. Importantly, it also painted a portrait of their lives before the upheaval of the invasion, first by the Soviets and then by the Nazis. Watching their testimony, we better understood all that was lost: a way of life, their shtetl culture. We also better appreciated all that was involved to allow for their survival.
Aside from illuminating our family’s history, their testimony, along with the 59,000 others collected for the project, can be studied by scholars. There are countless stories waiting to be heard. It is at least somewhat reassuring, in this time of rising antisemitism and denial of truth, that this library exists.
You may be interested to know that Paula’s and David’s testimonies were key resources for two books: The Shoemaker’s Son, written by their granddaughter, Laura Bakst, and More Than Matzoh Balls: My Search for Jewish-American Identity, written by me.
On a lighter note, I recognize you don’t need help developing material for your movies, but Paula’s and David’s survival and love story would make a wonderful movie!
I hope you take pride in and feel deep satisfaction knowing how impactful your work has been. It goes without saying that your movies have entertained, enlightened, and uplifted millions of people worldwide. The Shoah Foundation initiative deserves to be recognized on equal footing. It serves as an essential archive of the truth of the Holocaust today and for generations to come.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Sincerely,
Linda Brody Bakst
Screen grabs from their visual testimony:
