Leon Leyson loved playing on the Krakow streetcars with his friends and tagging along after his older brothers...
Then, suddenly, German soldiers were: In his country. In his city. In his home.
Seemingly overnight, the life he knew vanished. The Third Reich wanted him, and every other Jew in Europe, dead.
The darkest of times can unleash the worst in human nature - and also the best. Leon Leyson lived through those times. Forced from home to ghetto to concentration camps, separated from his family for months, he experienced things that no child should ever experience. But there was one thing that could never be torn away: his will to survive. And one man - one Nazi - showed him that hope can come in the most unexpected way. That man was Oskar Schindler; his famous "list" would mean life for Leon and for more than a thousand other Jews caught in the Nazis' net.
The Boy on the Wooden Box is a tour de force - a legacy of hope and a call for all of us to remember those who didn't get a chance for a tomorrow.
Leon Leyson was one of the youngest members of Schindler's list. He brings a unique perspective to the history of the Holocaust and a powerful message of courage and humanity. Believing no one would be interested in his story, he rarely spoke about his experiences until the film Schindler's List received worldwide attention.
In recognition of his many accomplishments as an educator and a witness to the Holocaust, Mr. Leyson was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Chapman University. He taught high school in Huntington Park, California, for thirty-nine years.
Mr. Leyson passed away in January 2013, leaving behind his wife, Lis; their two children; and their six grandchildren.
