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Willie Handler

@williehandler

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Author of fiction and nonfiction. Memoir OUT FROM THE SHADOWS. Fiction novels LOVED MARS. HATED THE FOOD, THE ROAD AHEAD, DEEP INTO THE WEEDS

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Proud to have spoken at the Bernard Betel Centre to Generations Forward, a group supporting descendants of Holocaust survivors, in commemoration of the third anniversary of October 7.

I shared my experience of being in Israel on October 7, and returning again in June 2025 during the war with Iran—two deeply personal experiences that have shaped who I am, and why remembering, speaking out and standing with Israel matters so deeply to me.

Willie, @williehandler thank you for including me and for creating this very meaningful space for everyone.

This was an excerpt from this evening “October 7 changed all of us. And for me personally, it changed something inside of me—the way I see the world and the way I move through life now. I came back walking through life with one foot in joy and one foot in grief and I don’t choose between them. I keep moving forward while carrying both.

We cannot allow October 7 to ever become just a date.We must remember all of the stories. The names. The faces. The lives that were taken and the lives that were forever changed.
May the memory of every soul taken on October 7, and those who have died fighting for Am Yisrael, forever be a blessing.

May we continue to be their light—to live, to build, to love, to celebrate, to choose life, and to be Jewish proudly, loudly and unapologetically.

Am Yisrael Chai
Always”
🇮🇱🇮🇱🇮🇱

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Two new books to start the week off right!!! #bookstagram #goodreadsgiveaways

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📚️ What a turnout! Thank you to our incredible local authors and the wonderful community who joined us to celebrate stories, creativity, and connection during our Indie Author Day Celebration. From little readers to lifelong book lovers, you helped make the day truly unforgettable.
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#indieauthor #indieauthorday #writersofinstagram #readcanadian #torontoauthor #torontowriter #library #richmondhillpl @therealhowardwong @fbeghin @mrichardsgraham

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Willie Handler thought he knew his father’s story. Then he did some research and learned that not only did his father lose a wife and child in the holocaust, he lost a second child that Willie never even knew existed.

Join us on Talks with Dr Shafer for a touching and through-provoking conversation with the author of Out from the Shadows: Growing Up with Holocaust Survivor Parents. The son of two Holocaust survivors, Willie Handler shares his story of familial trauma, growing up in the shadow of the Holocaust’s tragedies, and how he is working to help others share their family’s stories as well.

Listen here:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talks-with-dr-shafer/id1723838159?i=1000736219052

And wherever you listen to podcasts.

Learn more about Willie Handler’s work and to connect here:
www.williehandler.com

Subscribing to Willie Handler’s Substack for access to his newsletter and to stay up to date with upcoming events and book releases:
https://williehandler.substack.com/publish/home

Connect with Dr. Shafer: ⁠⁠https://drshaferstedronova.com/⁠⁠

To watch inspiring and informative Talks with Dr Shafer head to her YouTube Channel: / @talkswithdrshafer

This episode does not offer individualized medical advice. Opinions discussed are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice.

Little House Of Dreams Entertainment, LLC, 2025.

All Rights Reserved

#talkswithdrshafer #holocaustsurvivor #book #history #WorldWarII #podcast #williehandler

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Growing up in the shadow of the Holocaust transferred his parents’ trauma to him. Now Willie Handler is working to not only sort through his own experiences with trauma, but to help others do the same. Along the way, Willie has learned about how he uses humor at times as a defense rather than as a way to connect with others.

What defenses have you developed to try to stay “safe” when connecting with others, and are they really doing what you want them to do?

Join me on Talks with Dr Shafer for a deep and through-provoking conversation with Willie Handler, Canadian Author known for his humor-filled works of fiction whose writing turned biographical during the COVID 19 Pandemic, culminating in his memoir, Out from the Shadows: Growing Up with Holocaust Survivor Parents. The son of two Holocaust survivors, Willie Handler shares his story of familial trauma, growing up in the shadow of the Holocaust’s tragedies, and how he is working to help others share their family’s stories as well.

Listen here:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talks-with-dr-shafer/id1723838159?i=1000736219052

And wherever you listen to podcasts.

Learn more about Willie Handler’s work and to connect here:
www.williehandler.com

Subscribing to Willie Handler’s Substack for access to his newsletter and to stay up to date with upcoming events and book releases:
https://williehandler.substack.com/publish/home

Connect with Dr. Shafer: ⁠⁠https://drshaferstedronova.com/⁠⁠

To watch inspiring and informative Talks with Dr Shafer head to her YouTube Channel: / @talkswithdrshafer

This episode does not offer individualized medical advice. Opinions discussed are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice.

Little House Of Dreams Entertainment, LLC, 2025.

All Rights Reserved #talkswithdrshafer #podcast #humor #williehandler

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Willie Handler shares the stories of his father, a Holocaust survivor, and all that his father lost and endured during his life before remarrying and starting anew with Willie’s mother. On the path to gaining more understanding of his father’s past, Willie shares how he gained a new perspective on his father altogether. Join us for an impactful conversation on Holocaust survivors and their families, grief, generational trauma and healing as a community through storytelling. Listen here:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talks-with-dr-shafer/id1723838159?i=1000736219052

And wherever you listen to podcasts.

Learn more about Willie Handler’s work and to connect here:
www.williehandler.com

Subscribing to Willie Handler’s Substack for access to his newsletter and to stay up to date with upcoming events and book releases:
https://williehandler.substack.com/publish/home

Connect with Dr. Shafer: ⁠⁠https://drshaferstedronova.com/⁠⁠

To watch inspiring and informative Talks with Dr Shafer head to her YouTube Channel: / @talkswithdrshafer

This episode does not offer individualized medical advice. Opinions discussed are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice.

Little House Of Dreams Entertainment, LLC, 2025.

All Rights Reserved#talkswithdrshafer #podcast #williehandler #holocaustsurvivor #grief #parents #generationaltrauma

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#talkswithdrshafer #holocast #survivor #author #inmemoryfilms

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Grief and pain can look like tears. They can also look like humor. We never know what pain others are carrying with them, unless we truly know their stories and how they are navigating them.

Tomorrow I sit down with Willie Handler, Canadian Author known for his humor-filled works of fiction whose writing turned biographical during the COVID 19 Pandemic, culminating in his memoir, Out from the Shadows: Growing Up with Holocaust Survivor Parents. When faced with a desire to know more about his family, Willie uncovered decades-old secrets of his family, including a sibling he never knew existed who was tragically killed in the Holocaust. The son of two Holocaust survivors, Willie Handler shares his story of familial trauma, growing up in the shadow of the Holocaust’s tragedies, and how he is working to help others share their family’s stories as well.

Join us for a deep conversation on grief, family, living with purpose, and how humor can be a barrier or a cry out for connection.

Learn more about Willie Handler’s work and to connect here:
www.williehandler.com

Subscribing to Willie Handler’s Substack for access to his newsletter and to stay up to date with upcoming events and book releases:
https://williehandler.substack.com/publish/home

Get your copy of Out of the Shadows: Growing Up with Holocaust Survivor Parents by Willie Handler wherever books are sold!
https://williehandler.com/books-by-willie-handler/

Dr Shafer Stedron, MD is a musician turned Neurologist, a mom, a Jay Shetty-Certified Life Coach, an Author, Publisher, and so much more.

Connect with Dr. Shafer: ⁠⁠https://drshaferstedronova.com/⁠⁠

To watch inspiring and informative Talks with Dr Shafer head to her YouTube Channel: / @talkswithdrshafer

This episode does not offer individualized medical advice. Opinions discussed are for informational purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice.

Little House Of Dreams Entertainment, LLC, 2025.

All Rights Reserved#talkswithdrshafer #grief #trauma #holocaust #holocaustsurvivor

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I couldn’t tag all my amazing writer friends but if your book is here I hope you see this and share it!

I love the writing community and have been blessed with many beautiful relationships that I treasure. Love you guys. What a journey!!!

Keep writing, my friends, the world needs your story!

#monday #writing #supportauthors #supportauthorsbuybooks #readabookleaveareview #writingcommunity #writerfriends
#checkonyourhappyfriends #novel #christianfiction #hopeinchrist #jesussaves #hope #christianfictionauthors #christianreaders #comingsoon #january2026 #itshappening #itscoming #readreadread #books #christianauthorsofinstagram #countingspoonsbook #memoir

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An afternoon for book lovers of all ages! ❤️

Join us on Saturday, Nov. 15 at Central Branch to meet talented local Canadian authors and discover new reads across every genre.

Little ones can enjoy storytime read-alouds from children’s authors, while everyone can get creative with self-directed activities like blackout poetry, bookmark designing, and colouring pages for kids.

✨ see the full lineup of authors at the link in our bio!
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#indieauthor #indieauthorday #writersofinstagram #readcanadian #torontoauthor #torontowriter #library #richmondhillpl @therealhowardwong @fbeghin @author_jasveersinghdangi @mrichardsgraham

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What if the trauma you’re healing from didn’t start with you?

In this week’s Mentally a Badass episode, Willie Handler shares the moment he realized he was truly traumatized — not just by his own life, but by the generational pain of being a descendant of Holocaust survivors.

#Mentallyabadasspodcast #holocaustsurvivor #intergenerationaltrauma #mentalhealthadvocate #mentalhealthpodcast

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There’s some good ones today! Always so impressed with clever people.
#disneyboycott
#disney
#jimmykimmel
#fcc
#itoldyouso
#kamalaharris
#trump
#lorazepam
#thewhitelotus
#abcboycott
#abc
#adhd
#anxiety
#antifa
#fascism
#christian

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