Fanya Heller
Encyclopedia
Fanya Gottesfeld Heller is a noted Holocaust survivor, author and philanthropist. Born into a traditional Jewish family in a small village in the Ukraine
in 1924, she and her family hid from the Nazi
death squads with the help of two Christian
rescuers.
Heller recently reissued her autobiography
under a new title, Love in a World of Sorrow (Devora Publishing, 2005). Originally entitled Strange and Unexpected Love: A Teenage Girl's Holocaust Memoirs (KTAV, 1993), the book is part of suggested reading for courses at Princeton University
, University of Connecticut
, and Monmouth University
, among others. Her writings have also appeared in The New York Times
, The Wall Street Journal
, Newsweek
, and Jewish newspapers nationwide.
Heller obtained a B.A. and an M.A. in psychology
from The New School
for Social Research, and honorary degrees from Yeshiva University
and Bar-Ilan University
. She has also studied art history at Columbia University
, philosophy
and literature
at the New School, and family therapy at the Ackerman Institute. In 1998, the New York State Board of Regents awarded her the Louis E. Yavner Citizen Award in recognition of her contributions to teaching about the Holocaust
.
Heller also commissions an annual conference on Holocaust education at the Museum of Jewish Heritage
in New York City
. In 1998 she established The Fanya Gottesfeld Heller Center for the Study of Women in Judaism at Bar-Ilan University
, examining the female
Jewish identity
within the context of the social, cultural and religious history of the Jewish people.
She currently serves on the boards of numerous educational institutions and charitable organizations, many of which focus on Jewish education, feminism
, and raising awareness about the Holocaust. She lives in New York City and has three children, eight grandchildren, and eleven great-grandchildren.
----
Released 2010, on PBS 13, "Teenage Witness: The Fanya Gottesfeld Heller Story" was broadcast on PBS [Public Broadcast System 13} 4/11/10 She recounts her childhood experiences, during the Holocaust,in the Ukraine, and relates her account to inner city teens, with compelling detail. See PBS.org
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
in 1924, she and her family hid from the Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
death squads with the help of two Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
rescuers.
Heller recently reissued her autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
under a new title, Love in a World of Sorrow (Devora Publishing, 2005). Originally entitled Strange and Unexpected Love: A Teenage Girl's Holocaust Memoirs (KTAV, 1993), the book is part of suggested reading for courses at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, University of Connecticut
University of Connecticut
The admission rate to the University of Connecticut is about 50% and has been steadily decreasing, with about 28,000 prospective students applying for admission to the freshman class in recent years. Approximately 40,000 prospective students tour the main campus in Storrs annually...
, and Monmouth University
Monmouth University
Monmouth University is a private university located in West Long Branch, New Jersey, United States.Founded in 1933 as Monmouth Junior College, it became Monmouth College in 1956, and later Monmouth University in 1995 after receiving its charter....
, among others. Her writings have also appeared in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
, and Jewish newspapers nationwide.
Heller obtained a B.A. and an M.A. in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
from The New School
The New School
The New School is a university in New York City, located mostly in Greenwich Village. From its founding in 1919 by progressive New York academics, and for most of its history, the university was known as the New School for Social Research. Between 1997 and 2005 it was known as New School University...
for Social Research, and honorary degrees from Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private university in New York City, with six campuses in New York and one in Israel. Founded in 1886, it is a research university ranked as 45th in the US among national universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2012...
and Bar-Ilan University
Bar-Ilan University
Bar-Ilan University is a university in Ramat Gan of the Tel Aviv District, Israel.Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is now Israel's second-largest academic institution. It has nearly 26,800 students and 1,350 faculty members...
. She has also studied art history at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
at the New School, and family therapy at the Ackerman Institute. In 1998, the New York State Board of Regents awarded her the Louis E. Yavner Citizen Award in recognition of her contributions to teaching about the Holocaust
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
.
Heller also commissions an annual conference on Holocaust education at the Museum of Jewish Heritage
Museum of Jewish Heritage
The Museum of Jewish Heritage, located in lower Manhattan, is a living memorial to those who perished in the Holocaust. The Museum honors those who died by celebrating their lives – cherishing the traditions that they embraced, examining their achievements and faith, and affirming the vibrant...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. In 1998 she established The Fanya Gottesfeld Heller Center for the Study of Women in Judaism at Bar-Ilan University
Bar-Ilan University
Bar-Ilan University is a university in Ramat Gan of the Tel Aviv District, Israel.Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is now Israel's second-largest academic institution. It has nearly 26,800 students and 1,350 faculty members...
, examining the female
Female
Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces non-mobile ova .- Defining characteristics :The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male...
Jewish identity
Jewish identity
Jewish identity is the objective or subjective state of perceiving oneself as a Jew and as relating to being Jewish. Under the broader definition, the Jewish identity does not depend on whether or not a person is regarded as a Jew by others, or by an external set of religious, or legal, or...
within the context of the social, cultural and religious history of the Jewish people.
She currently serves on the boards of numerous educational institutions and charitable organizations, many of which focus on Jewish education, feminism
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
, and raising awareness about the Holocaust. She lives in New York City and has three children, eight grandchildren, and eleven great-grandchildren.
External links
- Website for Love in a World of Sorrow
- On the treatment of Jews in Poland during the Holocaust, by Fanya Heller, published in The Jewish Week (NY), July 21, 2005
----
Released 2010, on PBS 13, "Teenage Witness: The Fanya Gottesfeld Heller Story" was broadcast on PBS [Public Broadcast System 13} 4/11/10 She recounts her childhood experiences, during the Holocaust,in the Ukraine, and relates her account to inner city teens, with compelling detail. See PBS.org