On Friday, April 13 at 7:30 p.m., Chris Nicola will be the guest in the pulpit at Temple Emanuel of Great Neck’s Holocaust Memorial Service.
He will offer the talk, “No Place On Earth,” which is the title of his film that documents how a group of Jews survived the Holocaust living in a cave for more than a year.
Chris Nicola was born in England in 1951.
He and his family immigrated to the U.S., settling ultimately in New York City. In the mid-’70s Nicola began his life as an explorer by scuba diving in caves.
He first heard, as a rumor in Ukraine 20 years ago, the above-mentioned story of Jewish survival. To date, he has confirmed this extraordinary story by locating 14 of the original 38 cave dwellers.
He co-authored the book, “Secret of Priest’s Grotto,” which led to the making of “No Place On Earth,” a documentary about their experiences.
Nicola runs the Priest’s Grotto Heritage Project, a genocide awareness project in which the grandchildren of those who lived in Priest’s Grotto Cave during the Holocaust work hand-in-hand with the grandchildren of those who lived above the cave in building an exhibit to honor what those courageous 38 did so long ago.
They are motivated by the hope that by keeping this story alive for future generations, they will help to prevent such genocides as the Holocaust from ever happening again.
The Emanuel Holocaust Memorial Service is conducted by Rabbi Robert S. Widom and Cantor Jonathan Guss, accompanied by violin, flute, bass and organ.
Admission is free.
Temple Emanuel of Great Neck is located at 150 Hicks Lane in Great Neck. For further information, please call 516.482.5701.
