We Dared to Live

An engrossing saga that adds significantly to the body of Holocaust literature.
Abraham H. Foxman, National Director, Anti-Defamation League

Abrashe Szabrinski used the Yiddish typewriter given to him by his son Joe to record his unique story of survival and courage during the dark days of WWII. But it was only after his father's death that Joe found out the extent of Abrashe's exploits as a leader of the partisans who fought the Nazis in the forests of Lithuania. An officer in the Polish army, Abrashe fled ghettos and forced labor camps, joined the resistance in Vilna, and became not only a fighter, but also commander of partisan units serving under the Red Army. Alongside well-known figures such as Abba Kovner, he helped blow up bridges, railroad tracks, and munitions convoys, slowing down the Nazi war machine. An outspoken critic of those who headed the Judenrat as well as leaders of ideological movements, Abrashe speaks directly to us. His straightforward, unpretentious style makes his descriptions of heroic deeds his own and others all the more riveting.

This remarkable memoir is enhanced with historical notes that help the reader follow Abrashe Szabrinski's journey and learn more about the people he encounters along the way.

Like many Holocaust survivors, Abrashe did not divulge the entire story of his survival to his children. Dared to Live is his legacy to them, their children and grandchildren, and to us.

Abrashe Szabrinski (Abe Sabrin) was born in Selz, Poland on May 15, 1914. He married Luba (Libby) Weiskopf when he was twenty-seven. His first son, Joe, was born on December 21, 1942, in the ghetto of Vilna, now Vilnius, Lithuania. When the war was over, the Szabrinski family went to Turkeim DP camp in Germany, where their second son, Murray, was born on December 21, 1946. They arrived in New York on August 6, 1949, and Abe worked three jobs to support his family. A third son, Max, was born on May 24, 1953. The family became US citizens in 1954 and changed their name from Szabrinski to Sabrin. Abe retired in 1979. He died at the age of eighty-seven in September 2001, shortly after dancing at his granddaughter's wedding.

Joseph Sabrin Joseph Sabrin was born on December 21, 1942, in the ghetto of Vilna, now Vilnius, Lithuania, as WWII was engulfing the Jews in the Holocaust. After Vilna was liberated and the war ended, the family moved to the Turkeim DP camp in Germany. On August 6, 1949, the family arrived in New York where they became US citizens and changed their name from Szabrinski to Sabrin. A businessman and former owner of two companies, Data Executives and PC Etcetera, Joseph is presently a recruiting consultant. In 1968, Joseph Sabrin married Sandy Stone, also a child of Holocaust survivors. They have two children and three grandchildren.