
Personally: Toy Soldier
CBC
As a child, Alex Kurzem faced a choice: be killed or join the killers.
In the midst of the Second World War, he was separated from his family and taken in by a group of soldiers as one of their own. He was made a member of Hitler’s army – a toy soldier with his own rifle and miniature SS uniform.
But what the soldiers didn’t know and what no one would know for decades: he was a Jewish boy masquerading as a Nazi to save his life.
Alex lives with this false identity for so long, he no longer remembers who he was before – forgetting his parents’ faces, his birthday, his own name. But before he dies, Alex is determined to find the identity and family stolen from him during the Holocaust.
This is the story Alex would tell the world decades later, but doubts quickly took hold and wouldn’t let go. Could a story so unbelievable be true? Or is this a con to profit from the Holocaust? Eighty years on, is it possible to uncover who Alex really is?
Host Dan Goldberg unravels the true story.
Get lost in someone else’s life. From a mysterious childhood spent on the run, to a courageous escape from domestic violence, each season of Personally invites you to explore the human experience in all its complexity, one story — or season — at a time.
Hear episodes early and ad-free on CBC Stories Premium on Apple Podcasts.
Season 1 | Run, Hide, Repeat: a story of a childhood spent on the run.
Season 2 | Welcome to Paradise: a courageous escape from domestic violence.
Season 3 | Short Sighted: an attempt to explain what vision loss feels like by exploring how it sounds.
Season 4 | Sorry About The Kid: an emotional, deeply personal meditation on the loss of a sibling.

5 Listeners
All episodes
Best episodes
Seasons
Top 10 Personally: Toy Soldier Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Personally: Toy Soldier episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Personally: Toy Soldier for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Personally: Toy Soldier episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Run, Hide, Repeat | EP 4: Saving Mom
Personally: Toy Soldier
12/05/22 • 41 min
Pauline is struggling with doubts — the details of her family’s secret seem outrageous. But why would Stan and her mother lie to her? Pauline sets up a sting to find out once and for all if Stan and Ruth are telling the truth. And what she discovers changes her relationship with Ruth forever. Pauline, desperate to reconcile what Ruth has done to her, turns to understanding her mom’s troubled past. For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastnews/run-hide-repeat-transcripts-listen-1.6682766

4 Listeners

Run, Hide, Repeat | EP 3: The Weird World
Personally: Toy Soldier
11/28/22 • 54 min
Based on her mother and Stan’s stunning revelations, Pauline and her brother Ted start sifting through their childhood memories and matching them to the once unexplained events. Stan and Ruth, now openly a couple, are going deep undercover — and they want Pauline to join them. Pauline must choose between joining her mother in the unknown and leaving behind everyone else she loves in the world she knows. For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastnews/run-hide-repeat-transcripts-listen-1.6682766

4 Listeners

Run, Hide, Repeat | EP 5: Stan's World
Personally: Toy Soldier
12/12/22 • 52 min
Pauline sets out to understand Stan’s mind and motives. She meets up with his son, John, who has some very strange stories of his own. And Pauline finally comes across a potential answer – something that could explain all of Stan's actions. But will it be enough to forgive him? For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastnews/run-hide-repeat-transcripts-listen-1.6682766

3 Listeners
1 Comment
1

Run, Hide, Repeat | EP 2: On The Run
Personally: Toy Soldier
11/21/22 • 36 min
Now a teenager living in Saint John, the secrecy and unexplained moves wear Pauline down. Eventually she graduates and starts a career in journalism thinking she can start to live a normal life. That changes in February 1988 when her mother Ruth says she’s finally ready to tell Pauline everything. Sitting alongside Stan, Ruth’s secret shocks Pauline. Pauline realizes her life is in danger — and she will never look at her past the same way. For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastnews/run-hide-repeat-transcripts-listen-1.6682766

3 Listeners

Run, Hide, Repeat | EP 1: Don't Tell
Personally: Toy Soldier
11/14/22 • 32 min
It’s 1971 and Ruth Dakin is going through a messy divorce and fears for the future of her young children, Pauline and Ted. She meets Stan Sears, a United Church Minister, a man who offered comfort and safe harbour. But the encounter would change her life – and the lives of her children – forever. Soon, odd, unexplained things start to happen and the young family is suddenly on the run, uprooted from their cozy home in North Vancouver to Winnipeg and then eventually to New Brunswick. The children are told not to tell anyone, and there are no goodbyes — not even to their father. Also on the move? Stan and his wife Sybil. For transcripts of this series, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastnews/run-hide-repeat-transcripts-listen-1.6682766

2 Listeners

Introducing Run, Hide, Repeat
Personally: Toy Soldier
10/27/22 • 2 min
Best-selling author and journalist Pauline Dakin takes you on an immersive journey into a childhood spent on the run, one where unexplained moves and disturbing events took place under a shroud of secrecy. When Pauline was finally told what her family was running from, she was left with more questions than answers.

1 Listener

Run, Hide, Repeat Introduces: Love, Janessa
Personally: Toy Soldier
01/23/23 • 36 min
1 Listener
;Resize=(3000).avif)
Sorry About The Kid | Ep 3: Ghost
Personally: Toy Soldier
01/29/25 • 29 min
“Were you waiting for me to just say goodbye?” Alex and his grief counsellor, Yvonne, dive into one memory of Paul that Alex never forgot and try to trigger others. Plus, Alex’s parents discover that some of their own memories are not what they seem.

Episode 1: The Hidden Suitcase
Personally: Toy Soldier
02/17/25 • 32 min
Uldis Kurzemnieks believed he would take his lie to the grave – his life had depended on it. For decades, he told the same story of how he survived the Second World War as a boy, but his niece always believed there was more to the story. Now, she’s learning the whole truth – piece by shocking piece.

Run, Hide, Repeat Introduces: Let’s Not Be Kidding with Gavin Crawford
Personally: Toy Soldier
05/08/23 • 36 min
Show more best episodes

Show more best episodes
FAQ
How many episodes does Personally: Toy Soldier have?
Personally: Toy Soldier currently has 36 episodes available.
What topics does Personally: Toy Soldier cover?
The podcast is about Society & Culture, Documentary and Podcasts.
What is the most popular episode on Personally: Toy Soldier?
The episode title 'Run, Hide, Repeat | EP 4: Saving Mom' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Personally: Toy Soldier?
The average episode length on Personally: Toy Soldier is 28 minutes.
How often are episodes of Personally: Toy Soldier released?
Episodes of Personally: Toy Soldier are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of Personally: Toy Soldier?
The first episode of Personally: Toy Soldier was released on Oct 27, 2022.
Show more FAQ

Show more FAQ