As the world turns the page on 2015 and the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, there is an understanding that many fewer veterans and survivors will still be with us at the 75th anniversary in 2020. We will have to increasingly rely on recorded first-person oral biographies, published works, and physical remnants to understand the dark scar of the 20th century that claimed more than 65 million lives.

Friends of Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation and the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center are co-sponsoring Preserving a Place of Terror: The Remnants of Auschwitz-Birkenau on Wednesday, Feb. 24 featuring Dr. Piotr Cywinski, director of Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum. The wide-ranging discussion will address: the anatomy of a death camp; the context of national memory; the challenges of physical preservation; and the legal aspects of international preservation.

Chicago area Auschwitz survivor Fritzie Fritzshall will also speak on the survival and importance of preservation.

The program will take place at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center, 9603 Woods Drive, Skokie, beginning at 5:30 p.m. The event is free, but reservations are required.

Additional co-sponsors include: University of Haifa, ADL, Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania, Consulate General of the Republic of Poland, Consulate general of Germany, Consulate General of the Czech Republic, Consulate General of the State of Israel, Consulate General of Greece, Consulate General of Turkey, Catholic Theological Union, Polish American Association, Illinois Holocaust Museum, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Decalogue Society, Polish Roman Catholic Union of America, Shaarit Hapleita of Metropolitan Chicago, YIVO, Advocates Society of Polish Lawyers.