Daughter of Holocaust survivor to speak at Bridgewater College

Bernice Steinhardt, president and chair of Art and Remembrance, will speak at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 8, in Cole Hall at Bridgewater College.

Inspired by the art and story of their mother, Esther Nisenthal Krinitz, Steinhardt co-founded Art and Remembrance with her sister, Helene McQuade. An arts and educational non-profit, Art and Remembrance uses art and personal narrative to recognize individual courage and resilience, and to foster understanding and compassion for those who experience injustice.

Until her retirement from federal service in 2011, Steinhardt was a senior executive at the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the investigative and analytic arm of the U. S. Congress.

Steinhardt is also the co-author of the book Memories of Survival and executive producer of the film Through the Eye of the Needle: The Art of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz.

Through the Eye of the Needle will be shown at the convocation, followed by remarks from Steinhardt on her mother’s experience and its significance to her and others.

Following the presentation, Steinhardt will take questions from the audience.

Sponsored by the Mark Leatherman Fund for Connecting and Creating Community Building, the event is free and open to the public.

Bridgewater College is a private, four-year liberal arts college, located in the Central Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Founded in 1880, it was the state’s first private, coeducational college. Today, Bridgewater College is home to approximately 1,800 undergraduate students.