Peter Joseph Stein

For 87 years, Peter J. Stein, PhD, sociologist and Holocaust educator, brightened and enriched the lives of the people around him. He died on August 8, 2024, after a long battle with cancer.

Born in 1936 in Prague, Czechoslovakia as “Petr,” he was the child of a Catholic mother and a Jewish father. He and his parents survived the Holocaust; however, Peter’s grandmother, uncle, and aunts were killed in concentration camps in Czechoslovakia, Belarus, and Poland respectively.

Peter immigrated to New York at age 12 with his mother. His father followed three years later. His memoir A Boy’s Journey: From Nazi Occupied Prague to Freedom in America tells of his childhood experiences and celebrates family members who died during the war as well as those who lived to tell their stories.

A graduate of The Baruch School of City College NY, and Princeton University, Peter taught at William Paterson University, Lehman College, and Douglass College. A hallmark of Peter's career was treating each student with respect, and many students sought his counsel. He published sociology textbooks and countless articles and was a thoughtful presence in every room he entered. With other professors at Paterson, he also began to teach about the Holocaust and antisemitism.

Peter and his dear wife, Michele Murdock, moved to Chapel Hill, NC in 2007 and he became the Associate Director for Aging Workforce Initiatives at the UNC Institute on Aging. He also continued his work as a Holocaust educator for the North Carolina Council on the Holocaust, and the Chapel Hill-Durham Holocaust Speakers Bureau. He presented to civic groups, teachers, and students from elementary, middle, high school, college, and graduate programs.

Peter and Michele were married for 43 years and were fortunate to have a son, Michael, born in 1984. They traveled to England, France, Scotland, Czechia, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and many other places. They lived in New York City and Dobbs Ferry, NY, Chapel Hill, NC, and moved to the Washington, DC area to enjoy being near their family. Peter’s friends and family cherished his quick wit, passion, warmth, and keen interest in history, politics, justice, and sports.

Peter continued his work at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum as a member of the Survivors Speakers Bureau. He represented the USHMM survivors’ group in their First-Person Video series and at the US Congress for the 2023 Days of Remembrance Commemoration.

Peter is survived by his wife Michele Murdock, his son Michael Victor Murdock Stein, his daughter-in-law Sarah Stein and his grandson, Jackson Stein. For people lucky enough to have known him, Peter was a caring, intelligent, kind, and generous human being.

Donations may be made in Peter’s honor to United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Survivor Affairs program online or by mail: https://www.ushmm.org/Remembering-Peter-Stein.