PROBONO Bulletin - Winter 2008 - (Page 12)

fEATURE SToRy LAWyERS’ ImPRESSIoNS OF ThE gERMaN ghETTO WORK PaYMENT PROgRaM CLINIC “It is a privilege and an honor to see our firm take such an important leadership role in representing the survivor community. I was motivated to become involved to honor my father, who passed away last year. he was a liberator in World War II and made certain we knew of the unimaginable horrors of the war and about the courage and strength of those that survived. “This may be the last time we can be of service to survivors. Once you hear their stories, you want to do everything you can to help. “Imagine taking testimony from a client who tells you that, as a small child, she survived two years by digging coal and potatoes with her bare hands, and then had her leg shattered by the butt of a german rifle. Reparations will allow her to purchase pain medication because, despite 17 surgeries, her leg never properly healed. Or to hear about how another survivor lost his entire family in concentration camps and then survived in the forests until being liberated by allied troops. he had been denied reparations before and couldn’t afford an attorney to help him. It was so important to him to honor his family’s memory and receive official acknowledgment of what was done. Or to ask for a Survivor’s birth date—and to be told that he has two. One the date of his birth and the other the day when he was spared from the gas chambers at auschwitz. “Many of our clients previously applied for reparations they desperately needed, only to be denied because the applications are difficult to complete and they couldn’t afford an attorney to help. We’re now providing that help for free. “as lawyers, we have an opportunity to use our skills to perform some tikkun olum (a little bit to help heal the world). Without question, this is amongst the most rewarding legal work I’ve done in over 20 years of practice. The application takes but a few hours to complete, but the stories you hear will stay with you for a lifetime.” —alison Zirn (Chicago) “Yesterday’s clinic was an incredible experience. It was a privilege to be able to assist people who survived the horrors of ghetto life and concentration camps out of sheer will and luck. We worked with a wonderful man, Samuel, who recounted his days in two Polish ghettos and time in auschwitz as an adolescent. Samuel was only 11-years-old when he entered the Polish ghettos, but he knew that his ability and willingness to work was the only way he would stay alive. While in the ghetto, Samuel cleaned the streets, picked up litter, and shoveled snow in exchange for extra food. This type of work qualified him to apply for the grant. “Samuel attributes his survival to an older brother who guided him through the ghetto and the concentration camp. Unfortunately, his brother died two days before auschwitz was liberated. Samuel ended up losing his entire family, and said that for him, the real holocaust started after liberation, because he realized that he was the only one left of his parents, four sisters and brother. But still, Samuel managed to heal, move to the US, marry, have a family and keep alive his Jewish faith. “Samuel told us that he saw an ad in his local paper relating to the clinic, and he hesitated to come because he had filled out so many of these reparation-type forms, with little reward. he said that he was ‘tired already’ of these forms, some of which were only in german, so he was very happy to have people to assist him. he came surprisingly prepared with his paperwork and story. he thanked us numerous times, and told us that we were doing a great mitzvah. “Even though Samuel was the one at the clinic to receive legal services, we really feel that as volunteers, we received the greater benefit. The opportunity to talk one-on-one with a survivor will not be a possibility in a few years.” —Corinne Weissberg (New York) 12 | PRO BONO BULLETIN

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of PROBONO Bulletin - Winter 2008

PROBONO Bulletin - Winter 2008 Contents Cover Story: Digging Deep: DLA Piper’s Signature Project Model CSR Report Feature Story: DLA Piper Assists with German Ghetto Work Payment Program Clinics National News Mapping Impact An Interview With Jeff Coopersmith FourThought New Perimeter Update Awards and Recognition

PROBONO Bulletin - Winter 2008

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