Thread by @RepHoulahan

This past week, many of my family members were able to travel to Israel (on personal time and dime) and visit @yadvashem, the World Holocaust Center in Jerusalem.

This trip was deeply personal, and I'd like to share it with you and tell you a bit more about my family's story🧵

This is a photo I've never shared before.

In this scrapbook, you'll see my dad, grandparents and their Polish marriage certificate dated 1940.

I was fortunate enough to get to know my grandmother before she passed, but my grandfather, Karol, was murdered during the Holocaust.

In one post-war letter, a family friend described his death as too terrible to put into writing.

My family survived in part because of the grace of one person in particular, Father Jozef Czapran. A Catholic priest, he put himself at great personal risk by helping my family forge papers to hide their Jewish identity so my dad, just a toddler at the time, could survive.

It was an honor to be present as Father Jozef Czapran was posthumously recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. This designation is given to those who helped families like mine during the war.

https://twitter.com/usembassyjlm/status/1543824874916954120

Our nation and world continue to grapple with rising rates of antisemitism and other forms of bigotry.

That's why I've joined bipartisan efforts like @RepSchneider's calling on the DHS Secretary to address antisemitism nationwide:
schneider.house.gov/media/press-re…

It's also why Father Jozef Czapran's story - a story of love for one's neighbor - is such an important reminder of our shared humanity.