On an unusually hot and sunny Sunday in February, about 50 members of the 91传媒 community gathered under shade sails in the back lot of the Aish LA on Pico Boulevard to honor 95-year-old local businessman and Holocaust survivor David Wiener, who had just made a donation to dedicate Aish LA鈥檚 interior hall. Sunday鈥檚 event was the official unveiling of the dedication on the building鈥檚 front. In large letters, under 鈥淭he Boxenbaum Family Aish Outreach Center,鈥� the dark grey building now includes the names of Mr. Wiener鈥檚 parents, Moshe Chaim and Chana Wiener, who perished along with seven of Weiner鈥檚 eight siblings in the Holocaust.
Mr. Wiener, dressed in a navy sport coat, white shirt and black baseball cap, sat on a folding chair in the sun, along with the assembled guests. Aish LA COO 聽Azriel Aharon and Aish LA Executive Director Rabbi Aryeh Markman talked about the donation. Then Mr. Wiener took the mic. In a steady, low, accented voice he shared some details about his childhood in Lodz, Poland. When German officers rolled into town in 1939, destroying the synagogue across the street from his family鈥檚 one-room apartment, he decided, at age 13, it was time to leave.
He talked about his journey to Warsaw, then later, to a labor camp near Deblin, then Birkenau, and through multiple near-death moments and repeated escapes. (The 91传媒 Journal聽wrote about his ordeals on April 27, 2016.) He faltered, tearing up as he recounted family members who died, and one cousin he saved.
LA on a sunny Sunday feels so far from Nazi-era Germany, yet Mr. Wiener spoke about his childhood and his family with an immediacy that conveyed the urgent link between our shared past and our future. The connection between 91传媒 history and continuity also animates the mission of Aish LA. As Mr. Aharon put it, this makes Mr. Wiener鈥檚 gift and pledge of continued involvement particularly meaningful. 鈥淭he donation is to help us further our programming, send more kids to Israel, send more kids to Poland, and connect more kids and adults to Judaism and their heritage. That鈥檚 what David is about and what we鈥檙e about,鈥� Mr. Aharon said.
Aish LA is a local nonprofit with a 40-plus year history in LA, affiliated with Aish HaTorah worldwide. It is dedicated to revitalizing the 91传媒 people through educational and experiential programs, including heavily subsidized trips to Israel for young professionals, moms and dads, most of whom have never been to Israel before. It also offers one-on-one learning, group classes, and social events.
After his speech, Mr. Wiener met with members of the Aish community.聽 Then he sat down in the shade with Rabbi Markman. 鈥淚 work with different organizations. You name it, I鈥檓 there,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his one, a friend of mine told me about it. Then I met this guy here.鈥� He nodded toward Rabbi Markman, sitting to his left. 鈥淗e twisted my arm. He educated me, step by step. I鈥檓 happy. I鈥檓 happy. Rabbi, are you happy with me?鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 so happy,鈥� Rabbi Markman said.
A successful businessman who has lived in Los Angeles for decades, Mr. Wiener wrote a memoir about his childhood, his family and his experience surviving the Holocaust, called Nothing to Lose But My Life, which was published privately in 2007.
Wendy Paris聽is an author and ghostwriter living in Santa Monica. She is currently finishing a Master鈥檚 degree in Social Work.
