Destined to Live
| William Ungar | |
|---|---|
| Born |
January 21, 1913 Krasne, Poland |
| Died | September 19, 2013 (aged 100) |
| Alma mater | B.A. City College of the City University of New York |
| Known for | founder of the National Envelope Corporation |
| Spouse(s) | Jerry Schweitzer |
| Children | Florette Ungar (Shaashua) Joan Ungar (Levy) Denise Ungar (Stern) Rita Ungar (Moser) |
William Ungar (January 21, 1913 – September 19, 2013) was Polish-born American author, philanthropist, Holocaust survivor, and founder of the National Envelope Corporation.
Ungar was born to a Jewish family in Poland where he worked as a teacher in a technical high school. During World War II he fought with the Polish Army and was wounded. He returned to his home and when it was overrun by the German Army, he was able to remain hidden thanks to identification documents given to him by a Catholic friend. He was eventually uncovered by the Gestapo and was sent to the Janowska concentration camp in Lviv. He escaped and once again returned home where he was hidden by his Ukrainian landlord in a basement crawl space for nine months. In 1944, the city was liberated by the Red Army.
Ungar came to America in 1946, arriving on May 20 aboard the SS Marine Flasher, the first deportee boat to reach American shores after World War II. He worked at an envelope machine manufacturing company during the day while attending school at night. In 1952, after graduating from the City College of the City University of New York with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, he obtained several envelope making machines and founded the National Envelope Corporation. He grew his company into one of the largest privately owned producers of envelopes in the United States.
His memoir, published in 2000 by the University Press of America, is entitled Destined to Live. His second book titled "Only in America" is about his success in the business industry. He was honored with an Honorary Doctorate of Human Letters from Queens College and has received numerous awards for his accomplishments, both in the world of business and in the world of philanthropy, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, the America Business Achievement Award, being named the 1996 National Entrepreneur of the Year, the 1996 New York City Master Entrepreneur of the Year Award, the NCCJ Brotherhood Award, and the 2008 Envelope Manufacturers Association Founders Award, among others.
...
Wikipedia