Sam Moskowitz
Sam (“Shloyma”) Moskowitz, a Holocaust survivor, passed away October 7, 2021 in New York. Rabbi
Chaim Meir Hager, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, officiated at the service. Shomrei Hadas in Brooklyn made the arrangements.
Mr. Moskowitz was born in 1927 to Meir and Ita Moskowitz in Dubova, Czechoslovkia, in the Carpathian Mountains.
At 13, after internment in the Klein-Teich Ghetto, he and his family, including his five siblings, were deported to Auschwitz in the infamous roundup that occurred during the holiday of Shavuot in 1944. Only he and his father survived the labor-death camp. They were transported to Dachau.
Using his job packing the backpacks of SS officers, the young Mr. Moskowitz stole provisions for his fellow inmates. Both he and his father contracted typhoid. A young SS officer took a liking to Mr. Moskowitz, calling the redhead “royte,” and allowed the two minimal medical care, enabling them to survive.
Returning to his hometown after the war, Mr. Moskowitz found no other surviving family members. He helped two Jewish families emigrate to Australia and Canada using Mr. Moskowitz’s documents.
He made his way to Prague where he lived until 1949 when he emigrated to the US.
Mr. Moskowitz settled in Brooklyn and married Lily, also a survivor, in 1955. They had three children.
Mr. Moskowitz worked tirelessly to bring his father to the US from behind the Iron Curtain, which he succeeded in doing in 1967. His father had remained in Europe trying to reclaim a niece who had been hidden with local villagers and who did not want to relinquish her.
After running a butcher shop, Mr. Moskowitz went on to have a successful career in real estate.
“He was a man of integrity, always honest and meticulous in his business dealings. He inspired me with his work ethic and taught me what it means to be a mensch in business,” said his son Jay.
Mr. Moskowitz was part of the Vizhnitz chasidic community and served as president or board member of numerous Jewish organizations.
“He often spoke of how his family was his greatest source of nachas,” said the family. “A day did not go by without visits or phone calls from them. ‘Zidie Shloyma’ will live on in the strong and everlasting legacy of his heritage.”
Mr. Moskowitz is survived by his wife Nechama; sons Moshe (Rivkey) of Brooklyn, NY and Jay (Joyce) of Denver; daughter Risa (Stuart) Mehl of Long Island, NY; sister Sura (Bert) Fried of Long Island, NY; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren in New York, Colorado and Israel.
Contributions may be made to Hillel Academy, 450 S. Hudson St., Denver, CO 80246.
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