On April 16-19, 2026, an event honoring the history and legacy of the heroic World War II Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara was presented by the German-Japanese Association, Yawara Lippstadt e.V., under the leadership of its director Stefan Grosskreuz. It took place at the Kulturraum Synagoge, Lippstadt, Germany, an important cultural event space led by Managing Director Dirk Raulf. Mr. Grosskreuz's goal in initiating and organizing this important event was "to help spread the story of Mr. Sugihara."

The four-day event included the presentation of photographs, books, historical documents and installations about Sugihara and the Jewish refugees who were saved by his actions. Sugihara served as Vice Consul in Kaunus, Lithuania from 1939-1940. These survivors received life-saving transit visas from Sugihara, arriving in Tsuruga--followed by Kobe--Japan.

The event's main program event was the showing of Susanne Concha Emmerich's 2012 documentary He Defied the Tide of Time, Chiune Sugihara and the Saving of the 6000. The film presents the remarkable story of the Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara, and includes survivors' eyewitness acounts of this history. Following the screening, the filmmaker Ms. Emmerich engaged with the audience.

It was an honor to have the CD recording of Masha's Arigato: Warsaw to Japan 1939-1941 included in this event, preceded by a brief presentation--via video--by Laura Leon in both English and Japanese.

Among those in attendance were Consul General Yoshitaka Tsunoda of the Japanese Consulate General of Japan in Dusseldorf, Germany; and Mr. Vincent Piplack, of the Culture Department at the Japanese Consulate General in Dusseldorf, Germany.

Mr. Grosskreuz expressed gratitude to Nobuki Sugihara, son of Chiune Sugihara, for permission for photographs; and The Port of Humanity Tsuruga Museum in Tsuruga, Japan both for their printed materials and permission to display the photographs of the 7 Jewish refugees featured on the cover and in the book Emerging Heroes: A Story in 7 Photographs/WWII-Era Diplomats, Jewish Refugees, and Escape to Japan by Japanese historian Akira Kitade.

Photos: Stefan Grosskreuz, used with permission.

Kulturraum Synagogue Lippstadt flyer

Consul General Yoshitaka Tsunoda and Mr. Vincent Piplack viewing Laura Leon's video about Masha's Arigato

Exhibit Space at the Kulturraum Synagoge Lippstadt

Audience with filmmaker Susanne Concha Emmerich

Photo of selected materials about Sugihara and this history on display