Maximilian Lerner passed away on September 10, 2022, one week after his 98th birthday. His was truly an American story. Born in Vienna, Austria, Max, his parents Isak and Bertha, and sister Susi, fled the Nazis in May 1938, first to Paris, and then to Nice. After three years living in Vichy France, Max and his family managed to escape Europe via Lisbon, Portugal. They arrived in the United States in 1941. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on his 18th birthday and became an American citizen soon after being called to service in 1943. He was inducted after completing New York Evening High School, and soon after was assigned to Camp Ritchie (becoming one of the Ritchie Boys) for training as a counterintelligence officer, largely based on his fluency in English, German, and French. He returned to Paris with the first French troops liberating the city, and continued his service gathering intelligence, and arresting war criminals during the first stages of deNazification. After concluding his military service, he returned home to New York and obtained Bachelor’s and Masters’ degrees. He ultimately went into business as an importer, and with his late wife Julianna K. (Glass) Lerner, raised a family of three children, David, Shereen, and Thomas. Following retirement, he authored a memoir (Flight and Return) and two novels (The Expendable Spy and The Improbable Spy) and traveled widely, speaking of his experiences as a refugee and lessons to be learned. He participated in Holocaust education programs at the US military academies, returned to Vienna for speaking engagements hosted by the Austrian government, was part of the Speakers Bureau at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and was highlighted in National Geographic and 60 Minutes. He is survived by his beloved wife of 37 years, Lenore Lerner, children: David (Laurie) Lerner, Shereen Lerner (Robert Miller), Thomas Lerner (Kirsten Erickson), Jill (Kerry) Beraud, Doug (Sue) Kaufman, Jon Kaufman; nephews: Michael (Nancy) Cahlin, Richard (Alison) Cahlin, James (Michele) Cahlin, cousin Monica Finkel, and 11 wonderful grandchildren. Family was of utmost importance to him. Donations in his memory may be sent to the Museum of Jewish Heritage or HIAS.
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