120 HIAS Stories

A Poignant Account of American Immigration Since the 1880s

120 HIAS Stories details the personal accounts of 120 immigrants assisted in our 12-decade history of rescue and resettlement. Among the storytellers are singer-actor Mandy Patinkin, whose grandfather, Max Patinkin, served on the HIAS Board of Directors after his own arrival in 1905 from Poland. Other stories are by or about ordinary and well-known American figures alike, such as Olympian Lenny Krayzelburg, who won two gold medals for the United States in 2000 and Hadassah Lieberman, wife of U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman. (Visit our "Hall of Fame" to learn more about these contributors).
“The story of HIAS is the story of the four-and-a-half million people who came to freedom since we opened our doors in 1881,” says Leonard Glickman, past President and CEO of HIAS. “Of course there are far more than 120 HIAS stories out there, but this book is special. It is our way of acknowledging all those people and their families who bravely made a start in a new homeland.”

Most of the stories were written in the first person, either by a HIAS immigrant or a close relative of a HIAS immigrant. The approach varies from person to person, but there is one unifying theme – HIAS' role in their family’s escape to freedom.

“Indeed, many thought HIAS was a Yiddish term meaning, ‘rescue’ or something close,” explains Glickman. “It is why we commemorated this milestone in American history. And, it is why these 120 stories came together in what we believe is a poignant and moving compilation.” (One hundred and twenty years is significant to HIAS because of a common endearment among Jews: “May you live to be 120,” the age of Moses when he died.)

To order 120 HIAS Stories ($39.95, shipping and handling included), please mail a check to: 120 HIAS Stories, 333 Seventh Avenue, 16th Floor, New York, NY 10001-5004.