CHANDLER, AZ — He survived the unthinkable during the Holocaust, and now he's keeping the lessons of the past alive and reaching people from all generations in a truly unique way.
Ninety-nine-year-old Saul Dreier was just a teenager when he was taken from his home in Poland and forced to live in concentration camps during World War II.
Although some of his family members perished, Dreier survived. He moved to the U.S. in the late 1940s. From there, he married, had children, and led a very successful life.
But at the age of 89, he took on a new mission - to educate people about the horrors of the past through music.
He founded "Saul's Generation Foundation" and began performing with a band of other Holocaust survivors.
The goal is to spread the messages from our past - and also messages of peace - throughout the world.
"You would think - what's the big deal? Let's just get along. Doesn't everyone want to get along and enjoy their neighbors and live in peaceful life? Clearly, it takes a lot of work," explains Rabbi Mendy Deitsch from Chabad of the East Valley, which is hosting Dreier on Monday, Dec. 16. "I think by bringing in Saul, he has a unique perspective. He went through what he went through but still has such a happy disposition. And we can learn that even if we go through a traumatic experience - that no one should ever have to go through - that it shouldn't define who you are. You can still lead a peaceful, harmonious life and bring happiness to people around you."
Dreier explains that he was able to survive the Holocaust, in part, because he was selected to work in Oskar Schindler's factories - which was depicted in the 1993 movie, "Schindler's List." Schindler was a German businessman credited with saving the lives of more than a thousand Jews during the war.
You can see Dreier in person on Monday, Dec. 16, at Chabad of the East Valley. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. and the event starts at 7 p.m. For more information, click here.
