TORONTO – Sam Ganz, one of the founders of giftware and toy company Ganz he and his brother Jack arrived in Canada in June 1948 Sam was appointed president of the Canadian Toy Association and in 2005 the company introduced Webkinz a line of web-enabled plush toys that created a new category of toys and ultimately changed how kids play online The Webkinz Foundation has donated to many causes worldwide with a focus on aiding women and children and it is a testament to him that so many Ganz employees have been with the company for decades according to a statement released by the company Ganz is survived by his wife Gitta daughter Mindy and husband Jerry Schulman and grandchildren Sonny Ganz He was able to see granddaughter Emma be married in the family home in the days before his death.  Memorial donations may be made to www.onefamilytogether.org Signup for your daily digest of industry news and trends Some of the forms and images on this page may not work correctly with this enabled Please disable your ad blocker for this page Find the ad blocker icon installed on your browser This icon is usually located on the upper right side of your screen You may have more than one ad blocker installed Click the icon and disable the ad blocker for this website either by following prompts or clicking your browser’s “refresh” or “reload” button Gifts & Decorative Accessories delivers the latest gift and toy industry news Sign up to get exclusive industry information delivered to your inbox Nazi forces occupied the region and crammed thousands of Jews into the Berbesti Ghetto violently torn from their homes and their lives the Ghetto residents were packed like cattle onto trains and taken to Auschwitz One of Ivor’s most vivid memories was of SS officers throwing the cart doors open and shouting “Araus!” (“Get out!”) Ivor’s mother and youngest sister were sent to the gas chambers Ivor was miraculously selected for forced labour – the youngest known boy from the Berbesti Ghetto to make it out of Auschwitz alive and tattooed with the number A-3388 – a replacement not just for his name Ivor and his older brother Leo endured brutal transfers to other camps: first Fürstengrube On these journeys there was no food or water and Ivor survived the bitter cold by lying underneath dead bodies He was forced to watch as the Nazis viciously maimed their victims Ivor saw several commit suicide by throwing themselves onto electric fences Ivor and Leo were emaciated but somehow managed to stay alive long enough to be liberated my grandpa didn’t cling to a dream of one day rebuilding the life that had been so viciously taken from him He wasn’t thinking about teaching the world what had happened or spreading the message of “Never Again.” He didn’t tell himself that life is a gift nor did he believe that his will to live was the one thing the Nazis could not take away my grandpa was too young to think in such terms he could not identify with other Holocaust survivors who credited their survival to an ideological or purpose-driven mindset When asked what kept him going through all the terrors he faced my grandpa would respond simply that he didn’t know When I pressed him directly – why hadn’t he jumped onto the electric fences – he admitted that he often asked himself the same question but had no good answer his outlook may not seem as uplifting as others one that speaks to the human capacity to endure unthinkable suffering sometimes even without having a clear reason to do so my grandpa did not talk much about what he went through he focused on the practicalities of forging a new life from next to nothing After living in hostels and with foster families for several months he spent four years at the Gateshead yeshiva Ivor and his brother started a business manufacturing and selling bags and luggage Despite barely being able to write English a daughter of immigrants from Eastern Europe and together they built a vibrant and loving family just a few months after their golden wedding anniversary my grandpa started talking more openly about his time in the camps and liked nothing more than to crack a wry joke and he did not think there was any meaning to be found in the Holocaust He wanted the world to know all about the Nazi evils But he never tried to draw any positive or inspiring messages from what he went through and he did not frame his survival as part of any grand mission My grandpa would conclude every speech by asking “Where was God in Auschwitz?” and eventually it became the title of his book My grandpa was religious throughout his life and he was forever quoting teachings of the Gemara or Rashi one who could have stopped the Nazis – yet didn’t it seemed that God abandoned the Jewish People during the Holocaust Ivor had little patience for people who said things like “God’s ways are mysterious; we can’t understand them” the idea of the Divine ways being beyond human comprehension was at most an abstract belief It could not explain the unfathomable destruction and cruelty he witnessed Talking to my grandpa and listening to his reflections over the years one thing that always struck me was his unflinching honesty Yet despite the lasting trauma and his oftentimes bleak perspective Ivor pressed on while in the camps and thrived afterwards His cynicism and anguish never stopped him forging ahead and building an amazing life and legacy for himself My grandpa was loved by so many for his fierce sense of humour he was admired for his unwavering stoicism His survival and accomplishments are a powerful testament to the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit – the ability to bear inconceivable hardship My grandpa has always been an incredible source of inspiration for our family Nothing makes me prouder then being his grandson Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5 £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with 100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline removing any financial barriers to connecting people The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.