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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release April 10, 1997

PRESIDENT NAMES DIANE ASADORIAN, ALBERT ABRAMSON, GERDA KLEIN AND LEONARD WILF TO THE UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL COUNCIL

President Clinton announced today his intent to appoint Diane Asadorian, Albert Abramson, Gerda Klein and Leonard Wilf to the United States Holocaust Memorial Council.

Diane Asadorian of Belmont, Massachusetts, a television documentary producer, has served as General Manager of PBS Horizons Cable Network since December 1993. Recently, she traveled extensively through the former Yugoslavia collecting information on the atrocities committed against the inhabitants of the region. Prior to her current position, she was the Director of Cable Projects for WGBH Boston from October 1989 to November 1993. Ms. Asadorian served as a television consultant to the Mayor of New York City from February 1989 to June 1989. Additionally, from November 1986 to November 1988, she was a Programming and Production Executive for Showtime/The Movie Channel, Inc. Earlier in her career, she served as an Associate Director of Program Development and Research for CBS Productions and as Director of Development for Cerberus Productions. Ms. Asadorian earned a B.A. from Vassar College.

Albert Abramson, of Bethesda, Maryland, is a Holocaust survivor who has served on the Council since 1987. For eight years he was chairman of the Museum Development Committee, where he coordinated the construction of the Museum and its exhibits. He has been a partner of The Tower Companies since 1948. Mr. Abramson is a member of the International Leadership Reunion of the United Jewish Appeal, serves on the Board of Governors of Tel Aviv University and is a trustee of the Woodrow Wilson Center. Before enlisting in the U.S. Army in 1942, he received his L.L.B. from George Washington University.

Gerda Weissmann Klein of Scotsdale, Arizona, is a Holocaust survivor who is an author, historian, columnist and speaker. Her writings include her autobiography, All But My Life, excerpts of which have been included in high school text books for many years. The book depicts her experience with the Holocaust, which ultimately led to her liberation from a death march by her future husband, an American intelligence officer. She wrote The Blue Rose, which describes the world of the mentally retarded and has recently become a film in India. She also wrote the Promise of a New Spring, teaching children about the Holocaust, and A Passion for Sharing, which earned the Valley Forge Freedom Award. Her story is a part of the film "Testimony," which is shown as a permanent exhibit at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington. Ms. Klein recounts some of her wartime experiences in the Oscar-Award winning HBO documentary, "One Survivor Remembers," which has received a TV Emmy Award and two Cable Ace Awards. Ms. Klein has been honored with five Doctorates of Humane Letters.

Leonard Wilf, of Short Hills, New Jersey, is a child of Holocaust survivors, and he is a leader in both the business and Jewish communities in his area. He currently serves as president of Garden Homes, and he has earned a reputation as a leading supporter of Jewish causes for his commitment to Holocaust memorial preservation, the United Jewish Appeal and United Jewish Federation, among other activities. In Jerusalem, Mr. Wilf has built the Harry Wilf Independence Park in memory of his late father. Mr. Wilf earned his B.A. from Boston University, his J.D. from Georgetown University and his Masters of Law in Taxation from New York University.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Council was established in 1979 to provide for the annual commemoration and observance of the Days of Remembrance of the Holocaust, and to construct and operate a living memorial to its victims.

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