Overview

When three-year-old Joshua Gortler and his family were forced from their hometown in Poland during World War II, they scrambled for safety across border after border, finding refuge at last in Europe's Displaced Persons Camps. Undocumented and unschooled, Gortler spent his adolescence learning to survive. When his family eventually relocated to the United States, he found himself starting over as teenager in a foreign land with only his spunk and sharp wits to rely on. After teaching himself English, Gortler managed to complete high school in three years, earn a master's degree in social work, and begin what would become a distinguished career in the field of eldercare. Acknowledged as a leading pioneer in his field, Gortler dedicated his professional life to helping others stitch their torn lives back together. As a sought-after speaker, he has made it his personal mission to bring the lessons of his unique personal experiences--the value of perseverance, humor, ambition, faith, and the paramount importance education--to audiences as diverse as Rotary clubs, at-risk high schoolers, prisoners, and university students.

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9781665038287

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Reviews

From DP camp scamp to a community builder, pillar, and mentor. Josh's description of becoming a mentsh as a Displaced Person was especially rare and very moving. Engagingly written with humor, insight and erudition. -- Elliott Palevsky, CEO Emeritus, River Garden Senior Services, Jacksonville FL; Scholar of Yiddish language and literature Josh's rise from refugee to one of American health care's most respected and honored executives offers countless life lessons. -- Seth Goldsmith, Professor Emeritus of Health Policy and Management, University of Massachusetts at Amherst This a is book that every young social worker, rabbi, or aspiring organizer needs to read. -- Rabbi Haim Dov Beliak, Chaplain, Skirball Hospice, Encino CA; Executive Director, Friends of Jewish Renewal in Poland This story depicts the consequences of a world filled with hate and one man's indomitable will to better himself. A stunning example of the difference one man can make. -- Dee Simon, Executive Director, Holocaust Center for Humanity, Seattle

Author Information

Joshua H. Gortler was born in Poland in 1936. The Gortler family survived the Holocaust by living in Siberia and then Uzbekistan. In 1951, the Gortler family was sponsored to emigrate to the US, where they settled in Arizona. Gortler continued his education at Yeshiva College and then the Wurzweiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva University. He served for thirty-eight years as the executive director of the Caroline Kline Galland Home in Seattle from 1969 until his retirement in 2006. Gabrielle de Cuir is a Grammy-nominated and Audie Award-winning producer whose narration credits include the voice of Valentine in Orson Scott Card's Ender novels, Ursula K. Le Guin's The Tombs of Atuan, and Natalie Angier's Woman, for which she was awarded AudioFile magazine's Golden Earphones Award. She lives in Los Angeles where she also directs theatre and presently has several projects in various stages of development for film. Stefan Rudnicki is a Grammy-winning audiobook producer and an award-winning narrator who has won several Audie Awards and been named one of AudioFile's Golden Voices. Stefan's early singing career included choral and solo concerts at Carnegie Hall, Judson Hall, and Lincoln Center. Claire Bloom gained international fame in 1951 with her screen debut in Charles Chaplin's motion picture Limelight. Among her many memorable films are Richard III, The Haunting, Look Back in Anger, and A Doll's House.

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