[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 60 (Thursday, May 5, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E811]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF EVA BLASZ EGRI AND THE MUSICAL CONCERT 
                          ``ZOCHRENU LECHIM''

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. STEVE ISRAEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 5, 2011

  Mr. ISRAEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Eva Blasz Egri, a 
Holocaust survivor whose spirit and strength serve as an inspiration to 
her family, friends, and her community.
  Eva, a longtime friend of my constituent Len Romano, shared with him 
details of her tragic past in Auschwitz and the loss of her family 
during World War II. After returning to her home in Hungary after the 
War, Eva uncovered treasured songs that her father, Hazzan Shmuel 
Blasz, had given to a non-Jewish neighbor who risked his life to hide 
the precious music from the Nazis. Hazzan Blasz wrote these songs 
before the War when he served as chief cantor and musical composer for 
the Egr Jzr Temple in Hungary.
  After uncovering these musical compositions in the basement of her 
home and keeping them to herself for decades, long after she moved to 
the United States, she recently decided to share these documents with 
Len.
  I am proud to stand here today to honor Len and the distinguished 
cantors from the New York area who have worked hard to bring these 
songs to life by performing them in a concert at Temple Beth Sholom in 
Smithtown tonight.
  Eva's resilience is a lesson to us all to find the hidden beauty in 
apparent tragedy and commemorate the lives and contributions of those 
whose lives were lost.
  I applaud the efforts of so many in my district who have worked to 
bring Eva's music to the forefront and hold this special concert called 
``Zochrenu Lechim,'' Remember Us Unto Life.

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