Dickinson State University (DSU) is premiering Video Arts Studios’ latest documentary, The Mission of Herman Stern, Tuesday, Feb. 26, at 6:30 p.m. in Beck Auditorium. The film chronicles the life of North Dakota businessman Herman Stern and his efforts to help Jews escape persecution during the Holocaust. The story features current interviews with people that were rescued in the 1930s and 1940s.
At 16 years old, Stern immigrated to the U.S. from Germany and eventually settled in Valley City, North Dakota. He became well-known as the manager of the city’s Straus Clothing store. During World War II, Stern’s tireless work helped 125 Jews escape Nazi Germany. The film’s director, Art Phillips, says the documentary tells an important North Dakota hero story. “One of the main themes of the film is that one person can make a difference,” Phillips said. “He saved people from across the world all from his home in Valley City.”
Phillips also worked closely with national award-winning educator and historian Carl Oberholtzer to develop a curriculum to accompany the film. The two men previously collaborated on the Emmy Award-winning 2014 documentary “The Road to Little Rock,” which tells the stories of nine African-American students and the judge that supported their efforts to desegregate Little Rock, Arkansas, public schools in 1957.
Phillips says Oberholtzer’s extensive knowledge of the subject matter and decades of teaching experience resulted in a curriculum that perfectly supplements the film and gives perspective to the magnitude and importance of Stern’s work. “The film really outlines the positive impact he had on so many lives,” Phillips said. “And the curriculum uses his story as an opportunity to teach history by highlighting his humanity.”
Following the film’s screening, a panel discussion will be led by filmmakers of The Mission of Herman Stern, Art Phillips and Carl Oberholtzer, DSU Professor of History and Holocaust scholar Dr. David Meier, DSU faculty members Drs. Frank Varney and Cheri Robinson and DSU student Amanda D’Aniello.
This event is free and open to the public. The film and discussion are presented by the DSU Social Science Department, the DSU League of Political Scientists and the History Society and are co-sponsored by the Dickinson Public Library. For more information, contact Dr. Steven Doherty at steven.doherty@dickinsonstate.edu.
