SEPTEMBER 2026

When Terri Steindler volunteered with Jewish Family Service Association’s Holocaust Survivor Legacy Project, she understood that she was being entrusted with far more than history. For Steindler, co-chair of JFSA’s Volunteer Services & Community Engagement Committee, helping preserve those memories carried both meaning and responsibility. “By telling their stories, survivors have given our community something incredibly precious,” she said. “Their stories are their legacy, and we are honored that they entrusted them to us.”

Steindler and the other project volunteers were among those recognized at JFSA’s 2026 Volunteer Recognition Reception in August. The volunteers and participating survivors received the Lois Zaas Volunteer of the Year Award, named in memory of Zaas whose legacy of service reflected a deep commitment to helping others. The event also recognized the case managers, staff members and community partners who helped bring the project to life.

Trained volunteers interviewed 34 Holocaust survivors, capturing memories of their childhoods, families, wartime experiences and the lives they rebuilt. Each survivor’s story was transformed into a beautifully designed book featuring personal recollections and photographs that can be shared with children, grandchildren and future generations.
 
For 92-year-old survivor Louise Gipps, the completed books offer reassurance that history will not be lost. “If we don’t preserve the memory of the Holocaust, it will be forgotten—and repeated,” Gipps said. “The Legacy Project showed me that young people are finding modern ways to carry our stories forward. I’m very proud of the work they are doing.”

With support from the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, the Legacy Project began under the leadership of Ilana Mandel, who joined JFSA in 2023 with a vision to preserve survivors’ stories in their own voices. “These books humanize each survivor and give families something tangible to pass down,” Mandel said. “We created a legacy for Jewish Cleveland and beyond.”

Gilda Katz, LISW, JFSA care navigator and Holocaust program coordinator, said volunteers not only recorded survivors’ memories but bore witness to their suffering and resilience. “Each book is unique and powerful,” Katz said. “Despite everything the survivors endured, their stories culminate with words of encouragement, hope and love that will inspire generations to come.”