American Attorney Gregory Wayne Abbot has appointed Providence Umugwaneza and Lucy Taus Katz to the Texas Holocaust and Genocide Commission for a four-year term, according to a statement issued by his office. Abbot also serves as the 48th and current governor of Texas. “The commission ensures that resources are available to students, educators, and the general public regarding the Holocaust and other Genocides, as well as compile lists of volunteers, survivors, liberators, scholars, and members of the clergy for educational programme opportunities,” the statement reads in part. Following the development, Umugwaneza alongside her colleague Katz are tasked with coordinating events around the state. As a survivor of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, Umugwaneza founded the Kabeho Neza Initiative. In the US where she currently resides in San Antonio, Umugwaneza volunteers with fellow Rwandan Genocide survivors to advocate for the women and girls who were assaulted and infected with HIV/AIDS during the Genocide. She currently leads educational programs in the U.S. to raise awareness. Similarly, Katz, is a Hidden Child Holocaust Survivor and was hidden by a Catholic Family in Poland during the Holocaust in order to save her from Nazi capture. The statement says that she is a member of the Steering Committee of Decedents of Holocaust Survivors in Central Texas, lifetime director for the Texas Association of Homebuilders and the National Association of Homebuilders, and past president of both the National Association of Remodelers Industry and the National Kitchen and Bath Association, both in Austin.
