Blog - Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia

Aging Holocaust survivors need help maintaining homes they can’t bear to leave

Written by Emma Needleman | Jan 26, 2018 2:47:14 PM

When Sylvia Genoy was 13 and living in eastern Poland, she witnessed one family member after another herded up and sent to death camps run by the Nazis.
Genoy is one of an estimated half-million Holocaust survivors around the world. Philadelphia is home to about 500 who escaped the horrors of Hitler, according to the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.

Among this population, needs are growing as services diminish — and funding sources devoted to this group are drying up fast.

Brian Gralnick of the Jewish Federation said many area survivors need assistance with the costs of home repair. Last year, the group spent around $20,000 to fix up the homes of elderly survivors, helping them stay in a familiar and secure environment, he said.