HR0801 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0801 LRB104 21429 LAW 36488 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Samuel R. "Sam" Harris, one of the youngest known survivors of the Holocaust; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris was born Szlamek Rzeznik in Deblin, Poland in 1935; at the age of four, he witnessed the Nazi occupation of his hometown; he, his parents, and his seven siblings were subsequently forced to move into a ghetto, where they lived until its liquidation in 1942; he and two of his older sisters, Rosa and Sara, were then separated from their parents and remaining siblings, who were deported to the Treblinka extermination camp and murdered; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris survived the Holocaust through the fierce, protective love of his sister, Rosa, who worked as a slave laborer in the concentration camp outside of Deblin, where she hid both him and his other sister, Sara; they were all transported to the Czestochowa concentration camp in 1944, where Rosa was again able to hide her two siblings; he and his sisters were all liberated by the Soviet Army on January 17, 1945; the following year, he and Sara were smuggled to Austria by Rosa, who then arranged for her younger siblings' relocation to the United States in 1947, where he was adopted by the Harris family of Illinois, moved to Chicago, and was given the opportunity to experience college, a career, marriage, and fatherhood; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris began telling his story of survival and resilience in the late 1970s, later publishing his memoir, Sammy: Child Survivor of the Holocaust, in 1999; he reconnected with his past at the World Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors in Jerusalem in 1981; he later joined the campaign to require Holocaust education in Illinois public schools and shared his testimony with thousands of young people, always believing that the next generation could build a more just world; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris became the visionary force behind the establishment of the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center in Skokie, serving as museum president from 2002 to 2009; he continued to guide the museum as president emeritus, serving on the board of directors and the Survivor Speakers' Bureau; he bestowed his cracked leather belt, the only artifact he carried out of the camps, to be put on display in the museum's Karkomi Holocaust Exhibition, and he provided his interactive testimony to its Abe & Ida Cooper Survivor Stories Experience; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris was the recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2014, one of country's most prestigious awards presented annually to naturalized and native-born Americans whose lives reflect a proud commitment to our nation's ideals of diversity, opportunity, and service; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris remained steadfast in his belief of the importance of continuing to teach the lessons of the Holocaust in order to both remember those who were lost and prevent such atrocities from occurring again, and through his work, his indomitable spirit will continue to inspire future generations; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris was preceded in death by his son, David; and

WHEREAS, Sam Harris is survived by his spouse, Dede; his daughter, Julie (Jeff) Kreamer; and his grandchildren, Jessica and Jeremy Kreamer; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of Samuel R. "Sam" Harris and extend our sincere condolences to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Sam Harris as an expression of our deepest sympathy.