“I’ve paid attention to it as it’s been in different places, and talked to the curator and talked to partners who have had it, knowing that in the back of my mind, like that’s something that needs to come to Cincinnati, and it clearly needs to be in this building for all the connections that you and I are going to talk about today.” — Elizabeth Pierce
A landmark collection of artifacts and photos from Auschwitz is coming to Cincinnati in October 2025. In this limited podcast series, we’ll add insight and local context to this internationally renowned exhibition. In this episode, Jackie Congedo, CEO of the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center, sits down with Elizabeth Pierce, CEO of Cincinnati Museum Center, to talk about partnering to bring the exhibition to Cincinnati.
Those who visit will not just see the same exhibition that has been shown around the world. They will also get in-depth local stories of Auschwitz survivors who immigrated to Cincinnati. During WWII, the historic train station where this exhibition will be shown saw millions of American servicemen come through its doors. But there was another group of travelers whose lives would be impacted by Union Terminal. More than 1,000 Jews who survived the Holocaust immigrated to Cincinnati, arriving in the very building where the public will be able to view Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away.
It is a special layer of meaning and context that we think will give visitors an even more extraordinary experience.
The opportunity to bring this impactful exhibition to Cincinnati has been generously supported by Rhonda and Larry Sheakley, the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati, the Jewish Foundation of Cincinnati, the Ohio Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission and
H.B., E.W. & F.R. Luther Charitable Foundation,
Fifth Third Bank,
Trustee Jacob G. Schmidlapp Fund, Fifth Third Bank, Trustee
Helen G., Henry F., Louise Tuechter Dornette Foundation, Fifth Third Bank, Trustee
Western & Southern Financial Group
Les and Renee Sandler
The Kanter/Knue Family
The Neil Bortz Family
Rosenthal Family Foundation
Beth and Louis Guttman
This is part of the Cynthia & Harold Guttman Family Center for Storytelling.
Special thanks to Julie and John Cohen for their support of this series.
Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away. ticket info, additional resources for both adults and students, travel itineraries and more:
https://www.cincymuseum.org/auschwitz/
Visit the Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center
https://www.holocaustandhumanity.org/
Learn more about Werner Coppel, one of the Cincinnati survivors whose life will be featured in the exhibition
