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A Towering Jewish Hero Dies: We Mourn the Monumental Life of Sam Harris

JL;DR SUMMARY Sam Harris, a Holocaust survivor who played a vital role in founding the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, has passed away at the age of 88. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Sam HarrisHolocaust SurvivorAdoptionEducationBeshertHolocaust RemembranceIllinois Holocaust MuseumCzestochowaRosaSurvivor Stories Theater

Places mentioned

Czestochowa, Silesia, Poland
"Sam Harris was imprisoned in the Czestochowa concentration camp from age 4-9."
Deblin, Lublin, Poland
"Born in 1935 in Deblin, Poland as Szlamek Rzeznik, Sam was just four years old when the German occupation began."
Illinois, United States
"Holocaust survivor, President Emeritus of the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, and a man whose courage and conviction shaped everything we do."
Northbrook, Illinois, United States
"He came to America in 1947, was adopted by the Harris family in Northbrook, and went on to build a life of extraordinary purpose."
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Cairo Item ID 79135
Cairo Source ID 50
Retrieved 2026-04-04 05:30:44 UTC
Curated 2026-04-04 08:30:36 UTC