Holocaust survivor to Montserrat College grads: 'Hope is not an empty word'

May 21—BEVERLY — As a young boy in Lithuania, Samuel Bak witnessed the worst of humankind when his father, four grandparents, uncles, aunts and 7-year-old best friend were murdered in the Holocaust. The experience has helped define his work as an artist and painter for the last eight decades.

"I realized that I had a story to tell, an almost sacred duty to fulfill," Bak said. "I had to show my murdered family that in me they were forever alive, that I could carry the weight of their expectations that they so lovingly put on my shoulders and tell their tragic story."

Bak delivered that dramatic message on Friday morning during the graduation ceremony for the Montserrat College of Art's Class of 2022 at The Cabot theater, where 85 students received their diplomas. The event was also live-streamed for those who could not attend in person.

Bak, who lives in Weston and had his work on display at Montserrat College this past winter, told the graduates to never lose sight of hope.

"Hope is not an empty word," he said. "The society in which we live is far from perfect, and there is much that the younger generation will have to do, daringly, forcefully and enthusiastically, to improve it. You, young people, have before you a terrific task."

Speakers at the ceremony acknowledged the difficulty of the last two years due to the pandemic and praised the graduates for their perseverance. Montserrat College of Art President Kurt Steinberg, who spoke to the students while sitting on the edge of the theater's stage, said he had arrived at "my breaking point" when the Omicron variant hit in December.

"When I came back from holiday break it was you that got me through it," he told the students. "When I saw your faces back in January I was able to say, 'That's why I'm here.'"

"Sure, it would be easy to feel discouraged or give up," said professor Ron DiRito, who was chosen by students to be the faculty speaker. "But that is not who you are."

Student speaker Erein James Ruiz, of River Edge, New Jersey, described the last couple of years as "excruciatingly tough, traumatic, scary." But he said his fellow graduates have a unique ability to deal with difficult times.

"We as artists can face those problems by literally making stuff," he said. "And we can empower others to do the same thing, to care and love for another, and to be connected."

Steinberg asked for a moment of silence during the ceremony in memory of Kent Wosepka, the chairman of the college's board of trustees who was killed when he was hit by a vehicle while riding a bike in Texas in October. Steinberg praised Mercedes Sherrod Evans for her leadership after taking over as board chair.

The private visual art and design college was founded in 1970 by seven artists from Cape Ann and the North Shore.

Paul Leighton can be reached at 978-338-2535, pleighton@gloucestertimes.com, or on Twitter at @heardinbeverly.