Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla's parents among the few Thessaloniki Jews to survive the Holocaust

Albert Bourla, Chairman and CEO of US pharmaceuticals company Pfizer, shared the story of his parents, Jews from Thessaloniki, and how they managed to be among the 2,000 survivors from a community of 50,000 nearly eradicated by the Holocaust.

Bourla made his online remarks to the Sephardic Heritage International on the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. He posted both the video and a transcript of his remarks to his LinkedIn account.

Bourla's remarks follow:

"Remembrance. It's this word, perhaps more than any other, that inspired me to share my parents' story. That's because I recognize how fortunate I am that my parents shared their stories with me and the rest of our family.

Many Holocaust survivors never spoke to their children of the horrors they endured because it was too painful. But we talked about it a great deal in my family....