Tuesdays with Morrie Author on His Latest 

BECOMING MITCH
Born in Passaic, New Jersey, Mitch Albom is the middle child of three siblings who grew up in Oaklyn, New Jersey to Rhoda and Ira Albom. His family attended synagogue regularly. Mitch graduated high school early and went off to college at 17. The first class he took was sociology with Professor Morrie Schwartz. Since the class was small, Mitch was disappointed and contemplated switching to a bigger class where he could skip on occasion and not get caught. Just as Mitch was walking out the door, Professor Schwartz started roll call and said Mitch’s name. He explains, “I could have left but if I did, I promise you I wouldn’t be where I am today.” 

Professor Morrie left such an impression on Mitch that he took every class he offered for the next four years of college and graduated with a degree in sociology before he went on to graduate school. Beginning as a musician, his first love, he eventually moved into journalism. Starting his career as a sportswriter, working for publications like Sports Illustrated, GEO, and The Philadelphia Inquirer, Mitch excelled at writing. He became a columnist for the Detroit Free Press in 1985 and wrote for the publication for over 35 years. 

After losing touch with Morrie for 16 years, Mitch was surprised when he was watching TV and saw Ted Koppel talking to Morrie about dying. He couldn’t believe it. Morrie had been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease or ALS. Mitch knew he had to get in touch with his friend again and that’s how his Tuesday visits with Morrie began. After Morrie passed away, Mitch decided to write Tuesdays with Morrie, to pay Morrie's medical bills. Never knowing how it would resonate with readers, 27 years later, it’s the best-selling memoir of all time.

It includes Morrie's background, difficult childhood, and the emotional burdens he carried from having to keep his mother's death a secret as a child. Morrie and Mitch's close relationship is also shared, which became more like a father-son bond than a typical student-teacher one. The book explores what is important in life once we know we are going to die.

HOPE FOR HAITI

Following the devastating earthquake in January of 2010, an elderly pastor came to Mitch concerned about his orphanage in Haiti. Mitch couldn’t get the kids out of his mind and decided to fly there with the pastor and a group of others to check on them. When they arrived in Haiti, they found the orphanage overrun with displaced people clamoring for food and shelter. The orphanage had no bathrooms, only holes in the ground to use as commodes. In addition, there was no kitchen, showers, or school. The pastor confessed that he could no longer run the orphanage, so Mitch and Janine took over. Their humanitarian organization called A Hole in the Roof Foundation launched a campaign to raise funds for the orphanage; $82,000 was raised in just 19 days. A Hole in the Roof Foundation assumed operation, changing the name of the orphanage to Have Faith Haiti. 

Bathrooms and showers were installed, a kitchen was built, tile floors were laid, and other repairs were made. More importantly, the kids have begun eating three meals a day, dorms are built with beds, and each child receives a quality education in the school that was built. Having run Have Faith Haiti for over 14 years, Mitch visits monthly, making sure the kids get all the love and care they need to thrive.  

However, the country is in turmoil. Since the assassination of the Haitian President in 2021, violent gangs have overtaken 80% of Port-au-Prince. 
In March of 2024, Mitch along with a group of volunteers were evacuated by helicopter because of the danger. While eight volunteers were rescued, Mitch says that his heart aches for the 60 children and 40 staff members left behind at the orphanage. 

FINDING CHIKA

Chika, a young Haitian girl, was brought to the orphanage when she was three years old, following the death of her mother. Showing signs of illness, Chika received medical care and was eventually diagnosed with a rare brain tumor known as DIPG (Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma). Her illness couldn’t be treated in Haiti, so Mitch and his wife Janine brought her to the United States under their guardianship to seek the best medical care possible. Without children of their own, Chika became their daughter while they cared for her for two years. Despite their efforts, Chika lost her battle with cancer on April 7, 2017. Honoring her precious life, Mitch announced her passing on his website, sharing:

"Chika told me once when I said I had to go to my job, that what I did for a living was not really my job. 'Your job,' she said, 'is carrying me.'
She was right. Carrying her to the end of her journey was my job, and today I carried her beautiful little body out of our room down the hall, and finally out the door."

He wrote a book about her entitled, Finding Chika, where he shares the story of how this little girl made them a family. Mitch also shares the power of love, family, and human connection, even in the face of tragedy.  

HOPE SPRINGS ANEW

In 2022, a small child named Nadie who resembled a premature baby was brought to the orphanage. At six months old, weighing a shocking seven pounds, Nadie was near death. She was suffering from severe malnutrition from surviving on sugar water alone. When Mitch and Janine saw how critical her condition was, they knew they needed to act quickly to save her life. They flew her to the U.S. for immediate care. Today, Nadie is thriving! While the Alboms expected to bring Nadie back to the orphanage in Haiti once she was healthy, she’s still living with them two years later. It’s safe to say that little Nadie has stolen their hearts. 

HIS LATEST BOOK

Mitch’s latest book, The Little Liar, is a powerful novel that explores the consequences of deception and the power of forgiveness. The story follows the intertwined lives of three young survivors of World War II - Nico Krispis, his brother Sebastian, and their schoolmate Fannie. Nico is an 11-year-old boy who has never told a lie in his life. When the Nazis invade his hometown of Salonika, Greece, a German officer discovers Nico's reputation for honesty and uses him to trick the Jewish residents into boarding trains that are headed to the Auschwitz concentration camp.

Unaware of the true destination, the innocent Nico reassures the passengers that they are going to "new homes" and safety. Only when he sees his own family being loaded onto the final train does Nico realize the devastating consequences of the lie he was forced to tell. From that point on, Nico can never tell the truth again. He spends the rest of his life-changing his name and identity, desperately seeking forgiveness from the loved ones he betrayed.

Meanwhile, Fannie and Sebastian also survive the war and spend decades searching for Nico, hoping to forgive him. The book serves as a moving parable about the power of lies to destroy lives, as well as the redemptive power of love and forgiveness. Narrated by the voice of Truth itself, The Little Liar is a timeless story about the harm we can inflict with our deceptions and the ability of the human spirit to overcome even the darkest of mistakes.

Discover more about Mitch Albom, and get his latest, The Little Liar, at his website: www.MitchAlbom.com.