Holocaust survivor shares story with students

Holocaust survivor and author Sonia Kaplan visited Lehighton Area High School last week, leaving students and faculty with a powerful message of hope.

The 90-year-old New Jersey resident has given talks at around 60 different high schools and spent extra time in Lehighton having one-on-one conversations with students and signing copies of her book.

“She was fantastic. I was just in tears,” said Joanna Kozyra-Barilla, a paraprofessional in the district. “In the days following the talk, I had so many people come up to me and talk about how inspirational she was. She was 12 and lost her entire family. There were 68 folks killed on both sides of her family. Her message to the kids was you can do it, just stay strong. It was very powerful.”

Barilla helped to coordinate Kaplan’s visit after she had previously met her family and read Kaplan’s book, “My Endless War.”

Kaplan was born in Poland in 1929 in a city of 36,000 people, but said she is the only one remaining from that time period.

She spent much of the war in hiding and was eventually helped by Russian partisans whom she lived with in the forests of Eastern Europe. She survived and was able to immigrate to the United States, where she started her new life of hope and happiness.

After 60 years, she began sharing her story.

“Do not let your past control your future,” she told students.

Lehighton students greeted Kaplan with cards and flowers to thank her for the visit.

Assistant Principal David Hauser said Kaplan was very passionate in her delivery, and many of the students took her words to heart.

“Never be a bystander,” Kaplan told them. “Take a part. You have to protect one another.”

Lehighton students were not the only ones to take part in the event. The district invited a Holocaust studies class from Panther Valley.

“My students were completely enthralled and shared multiple insights and take-aways from the presentation,” said Jennifer Jones, Panther Valley High School teacher. “It was a once in a lifetime experience.”

Hauser said the district has worked hard on bringing in speakers to create “meaningful and authentic experiences for students, faculty and staff that allow for personal reflection and an extension into the classroom.”

Future speakers already on the docket for 2019 include Lehighton native Brent Kunkle, who has produced films for HBO/Showtime; and Dedan Brozino, chief development officer of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation.