14 poignant pics of Holocaust survivors and 14 heart-wrenching notes to go with them.
Stark and brazen in the face of history, these faces shine out and remind the world of its darkest moment but also its brightest future.
"Survivor" is a photo series that tells the story of over 200 people who survived an important and painful episode in history.
Every person featured in the series is a survivor of the Holocaust. Each portrait is accompanied by a caption, written in their own handwriting. The messages range from feelings of unquenched anger, to peaceful resolution, to hope for the future.
Photographer Harry Borden, a seasoned celebrity photographer, started the project 10 years ago and spent five years traveling the globe to meet and photograph his subjects. He photographed the survivors in their own homes using natural light to create a sense of intimacy.
“I wanted to do something that would have a lasting ... impact,” Borden told ABC News Australia. The series is both incredibly moving and a way of preserving the voices of those who lived through one of the darkest moments in recent human history — voices that should not be forgotten.
1. Felix Fibich

2. Agi Muller
"As a Hungarian Jew, I ran from the Germans, I ran from the Soviets. I’ve stopped running. Beauty and love surround me!" Photo by Harry Borden.
3. Leon Jedwab
"I believe I’m the last Holocaust survivor out of the 70 or so Jewish families including my mother, sister and brother who lived in my birthplace of Zagórów in Poland. I still live with the nightmares." Photo by Harry Borden.
4. Mary Elias

5. Dan Vaintraub

6. Lidia Vago

7. Tuvia Lipson

8. Kitia Altmann

9. Leon Rosenzweig

10. Relli Robinson
"It is our moral and conscientious obligation of the survivors of The Holocaust, and of Jews all over the world, to carry the torch of remembrance of The Holocaust and The Heroism of this Human Earthquake in 'Cultural Europe' (1939–1945), from generation to generation, to those generations — when none of us — survivors of the flames of hell will be alive anymore." Photo by Harry Borden.
11. Janek (Yona) Fuchs

12. Eve Kugler

13. John Balan
"As a hidden child I frequently lecture to children about my experiences. My great concern is who will continue to tell our stories when we’re gone in not too many years?" Photo by Harry Borden.
14. Mirjam Finkelstein

As each year passes, fewer and fewer survivors are left to share their stories.
Borden's book features portraits and written statements from 200 survivors, as well as biographies, preserving their stories forever.
Each photo and message is a reminder of our collective responsibility to never forget the horrors of the past, to honor those who did not survive, and to ensure this never happens again.
Watch the video below for a behind the scenes look at the making of the book:
- 91-yr-old Holocaust survivor has created a one-of-a-kind, first-person Holocaust curriculum - Upworthy ›
- Panoramic 'tour' of Auschwitz helps us see the massiveness of the largest Nazi death camp - Upworthy ›
- Dutch hero saved 10,000 Jewish people during World War II ›
- Republican Congressman compares vaccine passes to the Nazis ›
- Republican Congressman compares vaccine passes to the Nazis - Upworthy ›
- When childhood photos remind us of our most precious relationships - Upworthy ›
