Howard Kleinberg was born May 3, 1925 in Poland. He was the youngest in a family of ten. The family had looked into emigrating to Canada early in the 1930s, but health concerns did not allow this. Two of Howard’s older siblings did make the voyage at that time. The rest of the family stayed in Poland, experiencing the anti-Semitism that was so common at that time. The coming of the war saw this intensify: Howard’s family was forced into a ghetto, leaving everything behind. Eventually the SS held one of their terrible selections, and most of Howard’s family was deported, sent to their deaths in one of the camps. From there Howard began his life as a slave labourer, moving through a succession of camps as the war raged around him. Howard ended up in Bergen Belsen, where his health deteriorated, and it was there that a young woman named Nancy saved his life. Howard went on to recover in Germany, and in 1948 he made his way to Canada. Howard and Nancy were able to reconnect; they married and built a new life in Canada. Howard and Nancy first came to Crestwood courtesy of the Holocaust Centre of Toronto, and they went on to visit us many times, and we were able to visit them at Baycrest’s Cafe Europa and in their home. Please take the time to meet Howard here - https://crestwood.on.ca/ohp/howard-kleinberg/. #crestwoodpreparatorycollege #veteransbreakfastclub #holocaustsurvivor #shoahhistory #ww2poland #ww2oralhistory #montrealholocaustmuseum #yadvashemmuseum #torontoholocaustmuseum #auschwitzbirkenau #bergenbelsen #baycrest #cafeeuropa