Holocaust survivor to give free public talk at Rice U. on eliminating genocide

Rice University
Office of Public Affairs / News & Media Relations

MEDIA ADVISORY

Katharine Shilcutt
713-348-6760
kshilcutt@rice.edu

Holocaust survivor to give free public talk at Rice U. on eliminating genocide
96-year-old Jacob Eisenbach will speak Feb. 17 at 7 p.m.

HOUSTON — (Jan. 31, 2019) – An estimated 500,000 survivors of the Holocaust were still alive in 2014. Today, experts believe that number has dwindled to 100,000. The rapidly declining number of people left alive to testify to the horrors of the Holocaust makes those remaining voices increasingly important as the world continues wrestling with genocide, bigotry and incidents of anti-Semitism.

Jacob Eisenbach will speak at Rice Feb. 17. (Photo by Greta Weber)

At 96 years old, Jacob Eisenbach is one of those remaining voices. The lone survivor of a Polish family victimized by the Nazis, Eisenbach eventually escaped to California, where he worked as a practicing dentist until the age of 92. Today, Eisenbach is a public speaker, and he will give a talk at Rice University Feb. 17 in Duncan Hall’s McMurtry Auditorium, 6100 Main St.

“He has seen horrors and challenges that we can never imagine, yet he doesn’t let any of that get to him,” said Rabbi Shmuli Slonim, who runs the Chabad House at Rice University along with wife and Rebbetzin Nechama. “He lives every day to its fullest and uses his experiences to inspire others.”

Chabad has partnered with Rice’s Boniuk Institute for Religious Tolerance, the School of Humanities and its Program in Jewish Studies, Houston Hillel and other departments across the university to bring Eisenbach to campus. His talk at 7 p.m. will explore Eisenbach’s mission to eliminate the source of genocide from the human race. It is free and open to the public; attendees are asked to RSVP at the event’s Facebook page.

“To be able to witness and hear in person the story of a Holocaust survivor is an opportunity that won’t be around for too much longer,” Slonim said. “We are very fortunate and privileged to be hosting Dr. Eisenbach at our school.”

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For more information, contact Katharine Shilcutt, media relations specialist at Rice, at 713-348-6760 or kshilcutt@rice.edu.

This news release can be found online at news.rice.edu.

Follow Rice News and Media Relations via Twitter @RiceUNews.

Related information:

An Evening with Dr. Jacob Eisenbach, Holocaust Survivor: facebook.com/events/360134457897104

Chabad at Rice University: jewishriceu.com

Boniuk Institute for Religious Tolerance: boniuk.rice.edu/home.html

Program in Jewish Studies: jewishstudies.rice.edu

Houston Hillel: houstonhillel.org

High-resolution images for download:

Jacob Eisenbach (Photo credit: Greta Weber): https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/news-network.rice.edu/dist/c/2/files/2019/01/eisenbach_1_0-2jow5pk.jpg

Event poster: https://cpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/news-network.rice.edu/dist/c/2/files/2019/01/50422487_1020053318181008_4433876575691210752_n-16n6rwy.jpg

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