"Just never forget where you come from."

This simple phrase, shared by Dana Arschin Kraslow's grandfather Nat Ross, has become the guiding principle of her life. As a Holocaust survivor who endured unspeakable atrocities including two years in Auschwitz, Nat could have succumbed to bitterness. Instead, he built a life filled with kindness and purpose—a legacy his granddaughter now carries forward with fierce determination.

Early Life

Dana grew up in Jericho, Long Island, in what she describes as an idyllic childhood. "I had friends of all backgrounds, but the neighborhood was mostly Jewish," she recalls. "My best friend was my next-door neighbor. I looked out of my room into her kitchen. My childhood boyfriend lived around the corner. Our elementary school was in the center of the neighborhood, so we all walked to school."

But beneath this typical American suburban experience ran the extraordinary story of her grandfather. Born NusenRozenberg in Pułtusk, Poland in 1922, he came from a large, ultra-Orthodox Jewish family of eleven children. When the Nazis invaded Poland in September of 1939, his life was shattered. By the end of the war, both of his parents were murdered. Only Nat and three of his siblings survived the Holocaust. (I took out the 9 of the living siblings because it can confuse people if you don’t explain that 2 kids died before the war)

"First he survived the Gostynin ghetto and then a very small forced labor camp near the Poland-Germany border called Kolmar, where he was forced to dig his own grave," Dana explains. "A prisoner collapsed of dehydration next to him and they shot that prisoner, threw him in my Poppy's grave and said, 'Isn't today your lucky day?'" Miraculously, Nat later survived two years in Auschwitz where he came face-to-face with the notorious Dr. Josef Mengele, the “angel of death.” Nat also survived the death march as American and Russian troops were advancing to liberate the camps.

Dana's awareness of her grandfather's prisoner number—143499—has been part of her consciousness for as long as she can remember. "The tattoo on his arm was always there. From a young age, I always knew he was an Auschwitz survivor, a Holocaust survivor."

After the war, Nat met Dana's grandmother Celia on a beach in the Bronx. "They met and they got married three months later," Dana says. "My Poppy was ready to start his life and build a family. He didn’t want to waste any more time. They had truly the best marriage for 69 years."

Threads of Wisdom

For Dana, her grandfather's survival story has become central to her own identity and purpose. She worked as a news reporter for 12 years, first at News 12 in the Bronx and Brooklyn and then at Fox 5 in New York, where she created a Holocaust series. Dana went on to establish her own media/production company, DJK Communications LLC. "I'm a one-woman show. I shoot, write, narrate, and edit all my own Holocaust documentaries," she explains. "I've interviewed about a hundred Holocaust survivors in person in just the past two and a half years. I create these videos exclusively for the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County.”

This commitment to preserving Holocaust testimonies arose naturally from her relationship with her grandfather. "He was really gentle. He was really hardworking," Dana recalls. "He would not talk about the Holocaust unless you asked him. But if you said, 'Can you tell me?' then he would go on and on."

Unlike many survivors who lost their faith, Nat maintained his connection to Judaism, though in a more moderate form than his ultra-Orthodox upbringing. "As he got older, his observance levels would shift throughout the years, but he did get to a point where he was wearing tefillin every day and would go every Shabat to services at his local Chabad in Bayside, Queens.”

Dana herself embodies this blend of cultural Judaism with a deep commitment to tradition. She has created her own meaningful practice: "I started hosting one Shabbat dinner at my home every month. I invite two local families into my home and I try to never repeat families so that I can share the light and love with as many different people as possible.”

This tradition allows her to share Jewish customs with both Jewish and non-Jewish friends and neighbors. At one Shabbat meal, she said to a little boy, “‘Jacob, what was your favorite part of tonight?' And he said, 'Lighting the candles.' And I almost cried. That's why I do this."

Perhaps the most extraordinary thread connecting Dana's life to her grandfather's is through her children. On a visit to Poland in 2018, Dana discovered the birth certificate of her grandfather's youngest brother, Aron, who was murdered in the Holocaust. It’s unclear when and where he was murdered, but it’s believed he was only 7 years old when he died. Touched by the story of this brave little boy who would sneak out of the ghetto barbed wire in the middle of the night to find food scraps for his family, Dana decided to name her first child after him.

In an almost supernatural twist of fate, her daughter Maya (Hebrew name Yehudit Arona) was born on the exact same date as her namesake Aron—July 27th—a complete coincidence, or kismet. More remarkably, her second daughter was born on Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day). "If that's not a sign that I'm meant to be doing this Holocaust work, I don't know what is," Dana reflects.

Reflections

Dana's grandfather's experiences have profoundly shaped her approach to parenting. When her five-year-old daughter recently asked if there were "bad people trying to hurt you" in Poland, Dana realized the weight of passing on this history to the next generation. She carefully explained, "Bad people have been trying to hurt Jewish people for a long time, but we come together as a community every time and we always come out stronger.”

The values Dana instills in her children echo those her grandfather emphasized: education and family. "My Poppy's education was ripped away from him. And for that reason, it was really important that his kids attend college," she explains. Her mother, Nat’s daughter, went to graduate school, and Dana herself earned a master's degree. Dana’s sister and father both have law degrees.

Perhaps the most important lesson is about perspective. "There's literally two things that matter in life: your health and your family. Nothing else matters," Dana often tells her daughters when they sweat the small stuff. "If you can keep that in perspective and remember those values, life is going to be a lot easier and a lot less stressful."

This outlook helps Dana herself navigate life's challenges. When someone recently damaged her parked car, she caught herself complaining about it and stopped: "Most of my grandfather’s family was wiped out. My Poppy watched people get executed in front of him on a daily basis... so I have to go deal with my car now. These are first-world problems. I am aware of this and I try to remind myself every week how lucky and privileged my life is.”

Dana acknowledges the balancing act this perspective requires. "I grapple with this because we're allowed to have our own problems. We don't have to equate everything to the Holocaust... but that mindset really helps me keep things in perspective."

Through her documentary work, monthly Shabbat dinners, and conscious parenting, Dana ensures that her grandfather's experiences and wisdom continue to illuminate future generations. She embodies the truth that remembrance isn't just about honoring the past—it's about creating meaning in the present and hope for the future.

In Dana's life, we see how the darkest chapters of history can be transformed into a legacy of light, resilience, and unwavering purpose. As her grandfather taught her: never forget where you come from.

Dana Arschin

Stacy Igel

Karen Feldman

Threads of Wisdom