TERRE HAUTE — At the young age of 10, twins Eva and Miriam Mozes, were taken from their parents and older sisters by Nazis immediately upon arrival at the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland.
The young Jewish girls would never see their family members again.
The courageous tale of Eva and Miriam Mozes’ time in Auschwitz, and their interactions with the “Angel of Death,” Josef Mengele, is recounted in a new exhibit at the CANDLES Holocaust Museum on South Third Street. The exhibit is a pilot for a much larger project being developed over the next several years called “Intertwined Lives: Dr. Mengele, Eugenics and the Mozes Twins.”
“This is done from scratch,” Eva Mozes Kor, founder of the CANDLES museum, said Thursday night during a reception in honor of the new exhibit. “We’ve worked at it very hard.”
The 10-panel pilot exhibit tells the story of Eva and Miriam Mozes experience in Auschwitz as one pair of the “Mengele twins.” Mengele was attempting to use “eugenics” to shape a “master race.” As part of this effort, Mengele conducted experiments on Eva, Miriam and the other twins before Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz in 1945.
“I have always admired her spirit,” said Katherine Utley, an English and Latin teacher at Terre Haute North Vigo High School, speaking of Kor. Utley is one of nine Vigo County teachers who have applied to travel to Auschwitz in January on a trip sponsored by CANDLES.
The corpses of three young children on a latrine floor was one of the first sights Kor saw upon her arrival in Auschwitz, the pilot exhibit states. She quickly vowed to herself to survive the ordeal along with her twin sister.
Many decades later, Kor, whose sister Miriam died in 1993, startled many people by forgiving those that persecuted her. The pilot exhibit spells out her concept of forgiveness, which is not to forget or condone, but rather to free the victim from a terrible past.
Today Kor preaches this concept of forgiveness and attempts to educate people about prejudice, hate and moving beyond both at CANDLES, which she founded in 1995. She plans to take at least six area teachers to Auschwitz in January, making her third trip to the former concentration camp with a group of local educators. CANDLES is hoping to raise enough money to take additional teachers, she noted.
“This is for a cause that is greater than ourselves,” Kor said Thursday evening. About 200 people attended the unveiling of the pilot display. The evening included a silent auction and featured E Z Street, a three-piece jazz combo for entertainment.
Krissi Dillion, a fifth-grade teacher at Fuqua Elementary School, said she has brought her students to CANDLES several times over the years. She has also applied to take the trip to Auschwitz so she’ll be able to teach her students about the Holocaust better, she said. “I make it more than a single page in a social studies book,” Dillion said.
For more information on CANDLES, see the organization’s Web page at www.candlesholocaustmuseum.org.
Arthur Foulkes can be reached at (812) 231-4232 or arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com.
Local & Bistate
CANDLES museum debuts exhibit
- Local & Bistate
-
-
Patriotism & Honor
From his vantage point, Sonner Faught could see almost every volunteer in the cemetery.
-
Graduation turns to mourning in Clinton
Jeana Lunsford’s graduation from South Vermillion High School Saturday should have been a time of celebration.
-
School choice proponents foresee growth of vouchers
Twenty-seven Vigo County students benefited from tax-supported vouchers during the first year of the Choice Scholarship Program, and that number is expected to grow for 2012-13, say Indiana school choice leaders who visited Terre Haute Thursday.
-
Tales of obstruction meet first takeover attempts
A decade after Indiana legislators gave the state the power to take over chronically failing schools, the first implementation of the law is meeting with resistance, skepticism and questions about its costs.
-
THE OFF SEASON: Raising a flag for my father, veteran or not
My daughter, Ellen, and I stood at my parents’ graves on Mother’s Day a few weeks back and talked about how it couldn’t possibly have been so long since we lost them. My dad, for instance, has been gone for 16 years, and that is nearly unimaginable
-
3 rescued from burning residence
Quick action on the part of some first-responders is credited with saving the lives of three people in a Vermillion County fire early Saturday morning, according to the Vermillion County Sheriff’s Department.
-
He never forgot a name: Friends remember victim of fire at Garfield Towers
When Freddie Poore met you, he never forgot you.
-
Hometown boy embraces ‘Promise I Made’: Clinton native Ken Kercheval takes role in Dreams Come True production
Thanks to some help from a hometown boy in Hollywood, “This Promise I Made” is still on track to be kept in Clinton.
-
STATE OF THE STATEHOUSE: Many say they don’t vote in primary because of tag that comes with it
A couple of columns ago, I posed a question about why most Indiana polling places on primary election day had so few customers.
-
Police looking for convenience store robber
Police are seeking a robbery suspect following a Saturday morning armed robbery at the Jiffy MiniMart at 25th Street and Eighth Avenue.
-
Graduation ‘responsibility’: Rose-Hulman stages 134th commencement exercises
Inventor Dean Kamen gave a first-hand demonstration Saturday of how to be an innovator.
-
THE OFF SEASON: To the seniors, one last lecture before you go …
It dawned on me one day last week, as I sat at my desk in my teacher clothes and shoes, a stack of ungraded essays calling to me from a rather tall and depressing pile, that I hadn’t missed a high school graduation in 33 years.
-
Water rescuers
Emergency personnel wheel a man who was removed from a vehicle that had been driven into the water at Crystal Lake on Boston Avenue near 14th Street at about 9 p.m. Friday.
-
For many, camping outdoors is the way to beat the heat, enjoy nature
Stringing up fishing poles in the shade of American flags, households full of Hoosiers are packing into parks across the state this weekend.
-
Towns along National Road readying for next week’s miles-long yard sale
Stretching 824 miles from Baltimore to St. Louis, the National Road — known as U.S. 40 through Indiana — will soon be the host site for perhaps the longest bargain market in the country.
-
Rose grads honoring late president Branam at commencement today
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology’s Class of 2012 will honor the memory of Matt Branam during today’s commencement ceremony by wearing special pins with the phrase “Make It Happen; Make It Fun,” a favorite saying of the former Rose-Hulman president, who died unexpectedly on April 20.
-
Vigo County Jail Log: May 26, 2012
The following individuals were booked into the Vigo County Jail by area law enforcement on Thursday and Friday, based on jail records. Charges are recommended by arresting officers but are not final until the Vigo County prosecutor reviews the case and files official charges.
-
A fallen soldier returns home
An Army carry team moves a transfer case containing the remains of Spc. Arronn D. Fields early Thursday morning at Dover Air Force Base, Del.
-
Official touts trade with northern neighbor
A top Canadian diplomat told a Terre Haute audience Thursday his country was “disappointed” when President Obama at least temporarily rejected a proposed transcontinental oil pipeline from Alberta to Texas.
-
Caution urged for summer’s kickoff
Lane restrictions in construction zones on Interstate 70 and other highways around the state will be lifted to accommodate holiday travel for the Memorial Day Weekend.
-
Letters delivered
Several positions will be eliminated this summer at the Terre Haute mail processing facility as the U.S. Postal Service begins moving the operation to Indianapolis, a U.S. Postal Service spokesman has confirmed.
-
Companies seek Vigo tax abatements
Two Vigo County companies are seeking tax abatements for expansion projects, one of which is included as part of a county incentive package.
-
High-speed chase suspect caught in West Virginia
The suspect in a cross-country, high-speed chase originating in Terre Haute last week was reportedly in federal custody Thursday evening.
-
Second victim of deadly I-70 semi-trailer crash identified
The Vigo County Coroner’s Office has identified the passenger of a semi-tractor crash on May 16 in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 near the 12-mile marker.
- VIGO COUNTY JAIL LOG: May 22-24, 2012
-
Burn ban in effect for Vigo County through holiday weekend
Vigo County officials have issued a burn ban effective Thursday and remains in effect until 8 a.m. Tuesday.
-
Brazil remembers a Fallen Son
A small town seemed sadly quiet Wednesday, waiting to honor a local fallen warrior.
-
ISU OKs four-year degree guarantee
Indiana State University has announced a four-year “graduation guarantee” for students enrolling this fall and beyond.
-
Dems tout good side of compromise
Indiana Senate Minority Leader Vi Simpson, chosen to run as the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor with gubernatorial candidate John Gregg, said during a stop Wednesday in Terre Haute that bipartisan experience is a key factor in creating jobs and legislation to help Hoosiers statewide.
-
Motorcyclist dies, motorist charged after accident
A Terre Haute man has died of injuries he sustained in a two-motorcycle, one-car crash that also injured another motorcyclist late Tuesday. The incident has led to the arrest of the car’s driver.
- More Local & Bistate Headlines
-
Obama Honors Fallen Troops at Arlington Cemetery
Beryl Makes Landfall on Florida Coast
Raw Video: Cop Shoots Man Eating Another's Face
Raw Video: National Mall Concert Shut Down
Beryl Threatens Rain, Winds on Southeast Coast
Tropical Storm Beryl Strengthens, Nears US Coast
Service Dogs Help Wash. Soldiers Battling PTSD
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
UN Blames Syrian Forces for Shelling Houla
Raw Video: Gay Protest Blocked in Moscow
Shell Readies Arctic Drill Ship
Vatican in Chaos After Butler Arrested for Leaks
Today in History
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Raw Video: Obama Lays Wreath on Memorial Day
Astronauts Enter World's 1st Private Supply Ship
Jimmy Carter Endorses Egypt's Election Results
Japan Farmers Plant, Seek Radiation-free Rice
Raw Video: Heckler Bursts in on Blair Testimony
Woman, 80, Falls Out of Skydive Harness Mid-Jump
Dog runs alonside cyclists for 1,100 miles
Lady Gaga Cancels Indonesian Show After Threats
Long Story Short: Beyonce back on stage
Raw Video: Man Rescued From River in China
Celtics crush Sixers in Game 7
Alleged Lego Thief Faces Felony Charges
Has Snooki Named Her Baby?
Heat Wave Warms Holiday Weekend
Beyonce Entertains the First Family
Inspiration for the class of 2012
Colorado College Student Shot While Trespassing
Will Smith & Josh Brolin on "Men in Black 3"
80-Year-Old Skydiver's Nightmare Jump
JWoww Sizzles in a Black Bikini
Sliders on the Grill
Cruise ship crunch
Backstage With Beyonce
