Voices of Hope to honor Mark Wilf and remember Rabbi Philip Lazowski z”l at its Nov. 4 Evening of Hope.

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“I want you to live, my son. May God show you the way. The world will someday need you.”

Those were the last words Rabbi Philip Lazowski heard from his mother before she pushed him through a second-story window to save him from the Nazis. He was only 12 years old. He would never see her again.

He survived, and over the next eight decades, he would touch countless lives in ways his mother could never have imagined.

When Rabbi Lazowski passed away in June at the age of 96, Greater Hartford lost someone who had been part of the community for more than half a century. He was not only a Holocaust survivor, but also a rabbi, a teacher, a friend, and a man whose warmth and sense of humor made people feel immediately at ease.

After surviving the Holocaust, he built a life devoted to his family, his faith, and the community around him. For decades, he visited classrooms, spoke at community gatherings, and shared his experiences with people of all ages and backgrounds. He understood the importance of telling his story, even when doing so meant returning to painful memories.

On Nov. 4, Voices of Hope will pay tribute to Rabbi Lazowski at its annual Evening of Hope. The event will be especially meaningful this year, as the community comes together not only to remember a man who gave so much of himself to others, but also to consider how his work and the lessons he shared can continue without him.

The evening will also honor Mark Wilf, the son of Holocaust survivors with the L’Dor V’Dor Impact Award. Although their lives followed very different paths, both men have been shaped by the Holocaust and by a belief that the experiences of the past carry responsibilities for the future.

Today, Wilf is widely known as the owner and president of the Minnesota Vikings, but his work extends well beyond professional sports. Through his leadership of major Jewish organizations, including the Jewish Agency for Israel and Jewish Federations of North America, and his family’s support of Holocaust remembrance and education, he has made Jewish life and community a central part of his public service.

In a recent interview with eJewishPhilanthropy, Wilf reflected on the outlook his parents and grandparents maintained despite everything they had endured.

“They were hopeful and that’s how we need to be,” he said.

It is a sentiment Rabbi Lazowski would have understood. Despite what he experienced as a child, he never lost his belief in the goodness of people or the possibility of a better future. That belief was present in the way he lived and in his remarkable ability to connect with people across communities, cultures, and faiths.

As we lose more Holocaust survivors, we are reminded of just how much they have given us. Rabbi Lazowski and others like him spent decades sharing their experiences and helping people understand not only what happened during the Holocaust, but what those lessons mean for the world we live in today. They have left us with more than their stories. They have given us the knowledge, the example, and the tools to make our own choices about the kind of world we want to build.

For Mark Wilf, that work includes looking toward the future of Jewish life. In his recent interview, he emphasized that confronting antisemitism is essential, but that Jewish identity cannot be defined by the hatred directed against it. Investing in education, leadership, and stronger connections within Jewish communities is equally important. It is a vision of Jewish life rooted not only in remembering what was lost, but in nurturing everything that remains possible.

Voices of Hope’s Evening of Hope will take place on Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, at 5:30 p.m. There is still time to purchase tickets and join the community for an evening honoring Mark Wilf and remembering Rabbi Philip Lazowski. Tickets and additional information are available at: Ticket Link

To learn more about Voices of Hope and its work throughout Connecticut, visit ctvoicesofhope.org.

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