Survival
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Henriëtte Pimentel (1876–1943) was the director of the daycare center on Plantage Middenlaan. With a small group of allies, she smuggled approximately 600 Jewish children from the center to safe hiding places. On Tuesday, April 19,2022 the Henriëtte Pimentel Bridge was unveiled. The beautiful bridge over the Mauritskade leading to the Tropenmuseum will officially be…
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The Holocaust remains the darkest period in human history. Among the stories of unspeakable horror and loss, there are also tales of survival that seem almost miraculous. One such story is that of Fania Fénelon, a French Jewish musician whose extraordinary life was spared because of her involvement in a concentration camp orchestra. Her story,…
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Agnes Keleti is a name synonymous with perseverance, excellence, and an indomitable spirit. She rose to become one of the most celebrated gymnasts in history, winning 10 Olympic medals, including 5 golds. Her story is not just about athletic success; it is also about survival, resilience, and the enduring power of the human spirit. Keleti’s…
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“In shadows deep where nightmares dwell,A chapter etched in history’s spell.Holocaust, your bitter tale,Of anguish, loss, and skies so pale. From ghettos choked with sorrow’s breath,To camps where darkness met with death,The human spirit, tested, tried,Yet hope, a flicker, never died. In ashes rose a solemn vow,To never forget, to honor howThe brave souls fought,…
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Mary Weinrib was born on July 16, 1925, in Warsaw, Poland. She was born Mary Mania (Malka) Rubinstein. She grew up in Wierzbnik, a Jewish town that was part of Starachowice, Poland. Her mother was Rose Rubinstein, a dressmaker. Her father, Gershon Rubinstein, was a butcher. The family, which included a younger sister (Ida) and…
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My interview with Jackie Young, a Holocaust survivor: Jackie Young (born Jona Spiegel) was born in December 1941 in Vienna, Austria, but raised by adoptive parents in England. He talks about slowly learning about his own past, which his adoptive parents had kept from him despite his own faint memories and hints mentioned by relatives.…
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There is no bond stronger than that between a mother and child. The photograph above appears to be of a mother showing off her beautiful newborn cosily wrapped in a blanket and the smiling, doting mother. However, there is more to this photo. It really is a double miracle—giving birth is a miracle itself is…
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Life is only a sequence of events and accidents, often determined when and where you are born. When I was 15, as a young man in the 1980s in the Netherlands, my main interest was girls and trying to get beer. When Elie Wiesel was 15 and a young man in Romania (or then Hungary)…
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Mijn interview met Joosje Asser over Vaselientje Joosje Asser is de dochter van Eli Asser, tekstschrijver en journalist Joosje’s moeder is Eefje Croiset. Na de bevrijding werd Eli Asser journalist. Hij werkte voor het Haagsch Dagblad en het weekblad Vrij Nederland. Zijn doorbraak als tekstschrijver kwam in 1953 bij de VARA, waarvoor hij de komische…
History of Sorts 