We are back in the studio with our guests Stephen and Donald Falk, brothers from Point Roberts, Washington who work together almost daily to restore the memory of their Jewish predecessors from pre-war Breslau. Having compiled a formidable data base on the Falk family and all its many branches, they are now throwing their net even wider asco-founders of the Urban Memory Foundation.
For over a decade, they have studied in excess of 4000 handwritten Hebrew gravestone inscriptions from the destroyed Claassenstrasse (ul. Gwarna) which was in use from 1761 to 1856. This allowed them to place about 80% of the people buried in the Claassenstrasse into a family context. The Foundation’s projects are all part of a much greater “engaged memory” effort focusing on neglected Jewish heritage sites in Poland and across Europe.
-----------------
Dr. Donald Falk is a retired psychiatrist. His early interest in family history sparked his younger brother’s lifelong passion for genealogy. Stephen Falk is a retired intellectual property attorney. For over 45 years, he has been researching his Jewish family history from Breslau, other places in Silesia,and cities and towns in Posen Province, and West and East Prussia. He is president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of British Columbia, founder of Family Memory Trust, and a co-founder of the Urban Memory Foundation in Wroclaw.
Your host is Barbara Pendzich, a lecturer at the Taube Department on the history of Jews in medieval and early modern Poland. She also helps out in the Department’s administrative office.
"Jews and other Poles" - because we at the Taube Department of Jewish Studies at the University of Wrocław are convinced that the history and culture of Jews are an integral part of the history and culture of Poland. Our podcast is for anyone looking for new takes on the multi-national and multi-religious history of Poland. Our host for the Polish language episodes is Tomek Duda, who teaches Hebrew at the Taube Department. He talks with faculty and friends of Jewish Studies in Wrocław about Jewish history and culture and what it tells us about multiculturalism, inclusiveness, and tolerance, which we all feel strongly about and which relate to every minority culture everywhere. Our English language episodes are hosted by Barbara Pendzich, who lectures at the Taube Department and helps out in the Admin Office. Lean in, listen, and learn!
Jakub Wilk – our producer and lecturer at the Department of Journalism at the University of Wrocłąw. For more information about him go to https://dziennikarstwo.uni.wroc.pl/en/instytut/wykadowcy/pracownicy/jakub-wilk/
Semira Jassim – our graphic artist and top rate advisor on the art of podcasting. For more information on her go to https://www.linkedin.com/in/semira-jassim/
For more on the Taube Department of Jewish Studies on our social media:
Wouldn’t you like to study at the Department? We have a lovely MA in English Programme. Find out all about the application process here: https://judaistyka.en.uni.wroc.pl/
You can contact us here if you have comments or questions about the Podcast:
kontakt.ziip@gmail.com
------------------------------
Taube Department of Jewish Studies
University of Wrocław
Św. Jadwigi 3 / 4
50-266 Wrocław
judaistyka@uwr.edu.pl
Admin Office +48 71 375 28 11
Library +48 71 375 20 17