[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 63 (Wednesday, April 29, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E618-E619]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO SYDNEY PEARL

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. DAVID YOUNG

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 29, 2015

  Mr. YOUNG of Iowa. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Sydney Pearl, a 
twelve year old author from West Des Moines, Iowa.
  Sydney, a student at Stilwell Junior High School recently completed a 
book about holocaust survivor David Wolnerman. Mr. Wolnerman and his 
wife Mrs. Jennie Wolnerman are the last known living holocaust 
survivors in Central Iowa. I applaud Sydney's effort to preserve their 
story in her book A Lucky Lie.
  This book is an oral history of Mr. Wolnerman during his time in Nazi 
concentration camps and his life afterwards. The title comes from the 
lie Mr. Wolnerman told long ago in 1940, about his age as he was 
entering

[[Page E619]]

the concentration camp. By claiming he was 18, when he was only 13, he 
narrowly avoided being sent to the gas chamber. Mr. Wolnerman believes 
God allowed him to make that choice and ultimately it helped him 
survive. Sydney, through her words, was able to pass along his message 
for others to hear. The tragedy of the holocaust must never be 
forgotten.
  Sydney was encouraged to write the book by the Jewish Federation and 
A Book by Me, an Illinois company that taps children to tell stories of 
Jewish survivors. Her book passes down the oral history of David 
Wolnerman for other children nationwide.
  I congratulate Sydney Pearl for writing this book and for preserving 
the history of those that survived the horrors of the Holocaust during 
the Second World War. I am proud to represent them in the United States 
Congress. I know that my colleagues join me in congratulating Sydney 
Pearl and wishing her many successes in the future.

                          ____________________