Teaching Tolerance

Text

In 1982, Jack retired at the age of 65. He moved to Sun City, Arizona three years later. For his first few years, Jack spent his time relaxing and playing golf. Around the early ’90s, he got involved with an organization delivering talks on “Teaching Tolerance” (Jack Nemerov, We Remember History Oral Interview). The program was designed to combat racism and hatred and lined up speakers to talk about the Holocaust. It had taken Jack over 50 years to be able to speak about his experience during the war. Jack led the establishment of the Teaching Tolerance program in Arizona. He spoke to many high schools throughout the Valley, emphasizing the goodness of our nation and the need to respect our history and remember those that came before us. He sued his direct experience with Dachau and the Holocaust to bring alive to students the reality of what tolerance and hate can do to a society. To him, having an audience to listen to his experience was like therapy, of giving back.

Jack also led and supported the “Veterans Inspiring Patriotism” program which brings veterans to schools and universities in Arizona. As stated by Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame Society, Jack was a part of many other organizations including “Jewish War Veterans; Veterans of Foreign Wars; Military Order of the World Wars; Joe Foss Institute; Southern Poverty Law Center of Montgomery, Alabama; Holocaust Museum, Washington, D.C.; and the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Los Angeles, CA” (Jack Nemerov, Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame Society).

In 2008, Jack was inducted into the Arizona Veterans Hall of Fame. Three years later, Jack spoke at the Days of Remembrance exhibit at the Luke Air Force Base about events that occurred during the liberation of Dachau. Before this event, Jack had already become very involved with the Base and he continued to take part in other events they held.

In June of 2014, Jack traveled to Bedford, Virginia with three of his sons to attend the D-Day 70-year anniversary event at the National D-Day Memorial. Here, he was accompanied by many other veterans of the war. Jack received a lot of attention from the young soldiers who were dressed to reenact D-Day 1944. In all, this was a very great weekend for Jack.

Jack continued to lead the Teaching Tolerance program for around 20 years. Unfortunately, Jack developed macular degeneration around the age of 94 and was no longer able to drive to schools. He moved into a retirement home around 2013. Jack passed away in May of 2015 at the age of 97. A powerful memorial service to honor the amazing life Jack led was organized by Bob Sutz. Held in Phoenix, Arizona, the service was attended by many of Jack’s closest friends and others he had positively impacted by his efforts to spread tolerance and remembrance over the years. Jack was laid to rest in everlasting peace at the United States Brotherhood cemetery in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area next to his parents. Jack Nemerov will be remembered for the inspirational man that he was a loving father, a well-deserved Army Captain, a Holocaust liberator, and an educational role model.