Holocaust survivor Mike Jacobs will be featured as the lunch box speaker at noon, Tuesday, October 16. The lecture will be presented in the Q.M. Martin Auditorium at Panola College’s Carthage campus.

Jacobs was born in the small Polish town of Konin in 1925. At the age of 14, he and his family were taken by the Nazi Army, packed into a box car with up to 100 other people, and transported to the ghetto in Ostroweic, Poland. Jacobs’ parents, two sisters and two brothers were later murdered at the Treblinka death camp. His only remaining brother died fighting the Nazis.

After being housed in Ostroweic, Jacobs was later sent to Auschwitz, Birkenau and Mathausen-Gusen II – from which he was released when Americans liberated the camp on May 5, 1945. He worked as a shopkeeper in Western Europe before emigrating to the United States in 1951.

In 1954 Jacobs started his own company, Jacobs Iron and Metal, a scrap metal recycling company in Dallas, Texas. His first experience in scrap recycling was during his time at the Auchwitz labor camp, as it was one of his assignments while there.

In sharing his experiences as a holocaust survivor Mr. Jacobs will remind us of the privileges and freedoms that we as Americans have. Mr. Jacobs is a well-known speaker who, since 1956, has been sharing his Holocaust experiences with thousands each year. His testament is a reminder of the destruction that hatred causes and the power of faith. This program is free and open to the community.
It is requested that those planning to attend should R.S.V.P by calling 903-693-2091 or by email cferguson@panola.edu. This information is necessary to ensure there is a sufficient amount of food available following the lecture.