Where Most Needed

She is a Holocaust survivor. Now, nearly a lifetime later, survival is still a daily struggle.

For over a decade, she has relied on IFCJ Canada’s support to help her through life’s hardships.

“I was a 9-year-old girl and I remember the first time the German planes dropped bombs on Kyiv, Ukraine. I ran with hundreds of other people, searching for a hiding place. I remember we hid in an underground passage for hours; it was very scary.” 

Maya remembers celebrating Jewish holidays in secret as a child when Jewish traditions weren’t allowed — this is why providing a box of matzah on Passover means so much to Holocaust survivors like Maya. 

Born as World War II began, Lidiya never knew her father. The young Jewish man left his young wife to be a pilot, fighting the Nazis. With a baby in her arms, Lidiya’s mother soon received word that her husband had been killed in battle. The young Jewish mother was left all alone—to flee with her loved ones and her beloved baby as the Nazis approached.

Mira’s life was miraculously saved twice. The first time was when she was just a one-year-old during World War II, when her mother managed to escape with baby Mira from the death march to Babi Yar in Ukraine.

“I was born in 1931 in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. I was the only child,” says 92-year-old Yuliana, recalling happier days. “My parents had a special touching and trusting relationship.”

80-year-old Lydia has lived a hard life. A widow for many years since making aliyah (immigrating to Israel), she has provided round-the-clock care for her disabled child for more than 50 years.

The only one of nine siblings to have survived the Holocaust, 85-year-old Sibo has known times of darkness—and yet she has survived.

Lydia has survived so much in her life. She survived the Holocaust. She survived decades under Sovi

“You are my guardian angel.” That’s what 80-year-old Raya said during a recent visit from a F

“Zev remembers the Holocaust very well. In first grade when the Nazis invaded his hometown in Ukr