A story of survival, strength and hope

Seneca Valley Senior High School students were given an extraordinary opportunity and an unforgettable educational experience as they listened to 96-year-old Holocaust survivor Howard Chandler share his story. Mr. Chandler, who endured the horrors of Auschwitz, spoke to students during an assembly on Friday, October 10, offering a firsthand account of his time as a slave laborer in Nazi concentration camps.

Born in 1928, Mr. Chandler grew up in Poland before being sent to a series of concentration camps. From 1942 to 1944, he was imprisoned in the Starachowice Slave Labor Camp, then sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau and later Buchenwald, before being liberated from Theresienstadt.

After the war, Mr. Chandler immigrated to Canada in 1947, where he built a life with his family and became a respected member of the Jewish community. Since 2011, he has traveled with Classrooms Without Borders, guiding educators and students through seminars in Poland and inspiring them to remember, learn and act by sharing his powerful story of survival and resilience.

Following his presentation, students participated in a Q&A session and had the opportunity to meet Mr. Chandler in person. Many expressed how deeply moved they were by his courage and the enduring message of strength, hope and perseverance.

As the number of Holocaust survivors becomes smaller, opportunities to hear directly from those who lived through it have become increasingly rare. Mr. Jim Lucot, Seneca Valley Senior High School AP Government/Honors U.S. History teacher organized this event for his students and other classes to ensure that these invaluable lessons of history continue to resonate with future generations.