Welcome to From Rubble to Roots, a new podcast from the Center for Jewish History. Every family has roots. But some lie buried deep beneath rubble, under the weight of war, loss, and silence. In this podcast, we follow Holocaust survivors and their children as they gather what remains, hold onto what they can, and try to understand what it means to inherit such a history.

New episodes of this limited-edition podcast will be released every other Thursday.

If you are a Holocaust survivor or the child of a survivor, we invite you to share your story. Please contact gi@cjh.org to learn more. We would be honored to record your family history and help strengthen the roots of memory for generations to come.

With support from:

Episode 2
The Man Who Escaped Death Ten Times: The Isak Borenstein Story

He cheated death more than ten times. From brutal labor camps to near-executions, from collapsing mountains to unexploded bombs, Isak Borenstein endured horrors that defy imagination. He survived shootings, beatings, starvation, forced labor, and the relentless cruelty of the Holocaust, witnessing the murder of friends, neighbors, and strangers alike. Every day was a test of courage, quick thinking, and sheer luck, and yet he lived, and lived with hope. How did he do it?

Listen:

Episode 1
Surviving Trembowla: The Story of Judith Koppel

The debut episode, “Surviving Trembowla: The Story of Judith Koppel,” features Sabina Barash of New Orleans sharing her mother’s remarkable story in conversation with Jewish history journalist Miriam Malka Frankel. From Rubble to Roots is supported by Ancestry®, reflecting a shared commitment to filling in gaps in family histories and reconnecting survivors and their descendants with lost family members.

Listen: