Alex Moskovic (M / Slovakia, 1931-2019), Holocaust survivor

Alex Moskovic (M / Slovakia, 1931-2019), Holocaust survivor.

• KEYWORDS : <Auschwitz> <Buchenwald (Block 66)> <Liberation of Buchenwald>

Obituary

It is with heartfelt sadness that the Congregation mourns the loss of Alex Moskovic. Alex passed away on September 14th. He was pre-deceased by his wife Jo after 56 years of marriage.

Alex is survived by his two sons, Steven and David; daughters-in-law, Veronica Serotini and Anne Donohue; and grandchildren, Jeffrey, Andrew, Lauren, Max, Amy, and Sarah.

Alex was born in Sobrance, Czechoslovakia in 1931 to Joseph and Giselle Moskowitz.

In 1944 at the age of 13 Alex and his family were sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau. After approximately 6 months of working on the Scheisse Kommando, pushing a rollwagen with other boys through the sub-camps of Auschwitz, Alex was put on the same transport as Eli Wiesel to Buchenwald, where with some 1,000 other boys they benefited from a German Communist-led underground effort with Czech and Polish Jewish veteran prisoner activists to sustain the youths until liberation in 1945.

After liberation, as the only survivor in his family, Alex came as an orphan refugee to the U.S. where he put himself through school, and eventually became a videotape editor with ABC’s Wide World of Sports where he travelled the world and earned 10 Emmy Awards.

After retirement he spent much time as an active educator and representative of survivors on the Holocaust. He was part of a U.S. State Department delegation to a conference on International Holocaust Era Assets in the Czech Republic. He later travelled to many countries to discuss the film Kinderblock 66: Return To Buchenwald, and to share his story. He used to say, as a survivor, he had a responsibility to tell the world. He fulfilled that responsibility well.

Obituary (Kinderblock 66, 15 September 2019)

Incredibly sad to say that Alex Moskovic, Buchenwald boy, one of the featured survivors in Kinderblock 66: Return to Buchenwald, and a wonderful man and survivor-educator died early this morning. Alex, from Sobrance, in Slovakia, was a teenager in Auschwitz-Birkenau for six months on scheiße duty rolling a giant rollwagen with other boys among Birkenau's sub-camps, and was subsequently at the evacuation of Auschwitz on the same transport as Elie Wiesel to Buchenwald, where with some 1000 boys, they benefited from a German Communist-led underground effort with Czech and Polish Jewish veteran prisoner activists to sustain the youths until liberation.

After liberation and a brief return to Slovakia (he was the only survivor in his family), Alex came as an orphan refugee to the U.S., studied television, and eventually was Roon Arledge's video engineer on ABC Wide World of Sports. He was with the team broadcasting the Munich Olympics in 1972, and just days before had taken the ABC team to nearby Dachau. Alex won ten Emmy awards in his successful career, and then -- after retirement -- became an active educator and representative of survivors on the Holocaust. He was part of a U.S. State Department delegation to a conference on International Holocaust Era Assets in the Czech republic. Later he was an active and effective speaker travelling to numerous venues with Kinderblock 66, among these here in Michigan at Michigan State University and the University of Michigan Flint, overseas in Prague and Sobrance, and elsewhere.

Alex lost his lovely wife Jo in 2017, and now Alex has left us too. He taught me much as we learned and reflected together. He was especially insightful about human behavior in the camps under extreme conditions. I cherished our friendship. He used to say, as a survivor, he had a responsibility to tell the world. He fulfilled that responsibility well.