I'm going to see a Holocaust Survivor speak!

[WildFlower]

I'm looking forward to tonight! Eva Kor who was just a small child was taken away from her family along with her twin sister and was experimented on by Dr. Mengele.

I have never met a holocaust survior and I think it will be good for the soul to see her speak. I'm going to bring lots of klenex!

Events | University of Nevada, Reno

 

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[AroundTheWorld]

It sounds like it will be an amazing evening. How humbling it would be to hear someone speak about forgiveness when they were put through something like that as a child.

Let us know how this has an impact on you!

 

[Bobo]

It'd be nice to grab Achmidinimawhackjob by the ear, twist it and drag him in there to listen....

Oooops, Bobo been reading news today, sorry.

 

[WildFlower]

AroundTheWorld, I will!

Bobo, He probably bites!

Oh.. I'm also excited because my 18 year old son and his friends want to go! I never thought they would be interested. I'll give you feedback on their thoughts too!

 

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[yveskleinsky]

...I just got goosebumps when I read your post. ...I didn't know anyone survived these "experiments." ...Wow...just wow. I second ATW's request--please come back and share!

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I just watched Schindler's List for the first time a few days ago. I haven't been able to sleep for days. Enjoy the talk and let us know how it goes.

 

[hatterasguy]

I'm a big WW2 history buff and would love to be their.

You should listen to any WW2 vet or survivor while you can, they are all getting very old.

I have heard some very good stories by chatting them up. One was telling me about how he used to watch the Spit's and ME109's go at it in the air over his school. He would skip out of the air raid shelter and go up on the roof to watch the dogfights!

I also got to meet some famous ones. One was on the co-pilot of Bockscar when they dropped the bomb on Nagasaki. Another was involved in getting the flag they raised on Iwo Jima to get that famous picture.

 

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[LagunaLauren]

Wildflower-thanks for sharing this. Rep++ Impressed that your 18 year-old is interested in going too. I interviewed Mike Jacobs, an Auschwitz survivor, when I was in Junior High School for a project. It was one of the most profound experiences of my life; one that will stick with me forever. The thing I remember most was that after he relayed his horrific experiences, he calmly professed that he... "doesn't speak from hate. Hate breeds Hate." He merely wanted people to be educated about what happened to ensure that history would never repeat itself. Incredible.

 

[WildFlower]

Every seat in the concert hall was taken and the walls were lined with people.. the room was packed. From what I could see not one person left their seat or space until after she was completely done and the audience didn’t want it to end.

There were many points that brought tears to my eyes and most of those were personal triumph.

She was living in Romania and her father was a wealthy landowner when they were taken to the platform at Auschwitz. She believes that on that platform more families were ripped apart than any other location on the planet. As soon as they got off her father and two older sisters were gone in the crowd. Her mother desperately held onto her and her sisters hand. A Nazi looked at them and asked if they were twins. Her mother said yeah (softly) and asked if that was good. He told her yes.. then she said yes they are. They were immediately taken from their mother and taken to Dr. Mengele (She called him Dr. Mangler). She fought hard against the tattooing and even bite her captors. She made a silent promise to herself, that they were going to survive.

Eva discussed what she called the blood lab and they were always drawing her blood. They gave them brown liquid in the morning calling it coffee (it was not) and then nothing all day while they tested and only a small slice of what she called Hitler Bread (she put some humor in saying it was the Hitler Diet and we could buy that bread.. it helped break the tension in the room) She figured the diet was only about 300 calories a day and designed for you to die after 3 months.

She was given a series of shots and became very ill. She knew that anyone who goes to the hospital doesn’t come back so, she tried to hide it. They took her temperature and was in the hospital. Dr. Mangler with others came to her and said “What a shame so young. She will be dead in two weeks.†She said to herself that she will not die. After two weeks with no food and little water she crawled, because she could not walk (Imagine this at 10 years old… it breaks my heart). Imagine being in a cold room sick with no warmth, no love and no care. She crawled to the sink for water fading in and out of consciousness. Her fever broke and after three weeks returned to her sister. While she was gone her sister was placed in a room supervised over Nazi watch 24/7. Eva realized that the Nazis were waiting for her to die and then they would immediately kill her sister. Dr. Mangler wanted them dead as close together in time so he could compare with an autopsy.

What saved her and her sister was what she called ‘organizing’ (which I thought was an interesting choice of words). She volunteered to help deliver the food from the kitchen where she could steal (or organize) a few small potatoes. They ate 2 or 3 potatoes 3 – 4 times a week. Her sister became ill and Eva believed the potatoes helped her recover and saved their lives.

Eva said “Surviving was a 24 hour job. It never stopped.â€

She also said that when her spirits just started to break and was losing hope. She heard a rumble of a low flying bomber plane. She looked up and saw the American Flag. At 11 years old (at this time) she only knew of the American flag because her Aunt in America used to write them letters and the flag was always on the envelope. She then realized that other people were trying to save them. That gave her the will to survive.

Approximately 200 twin children were found alive by the Soviet Army at the liberation of the camp on January 27, 1945. Approximately 1,500 sets of twin children were taken to the camp.

Her and her sister lived in refugee camps for 9 months before returning home to find her Aunt, who lost her entire family, married to a man, who lost his entire family. Communists took over Romania and Eva told us “Communists have beautiful sayings but, freedom is only a dream†so, after the government took all their land and belongings except the clothing they could wear. She wore three dresses and a coat they moved to Israel in 1950 where they could feel safe. Eventually she met a Jewish man who was an American tourist (I wasn’t sure if that was a job… or what but, I gathered he primarily lived in America) and she moved to the US.

Later in life, her sister was pregnant and had some complications.. it wasn’t until after her second pregnancy they discovered that her kidneys were the size of a 10 year old child. They ended up failing and Eva donated one of hers to her sister. The anti-rejection medicine reacted to some toxin in her body that the Nazi’s had injected her with and gave her an extremely rare type of bladder cancer. Eva begged the museum (I guess in Germany), who had several vials of unknown substance, to take a little and test it for the chemical compounds to give some insight as to what was in their bodies. They refused and still do.

Eva founded the CANDLES (Children of Auschwitz Nazi Deadly Lab Experiments Survivors) and found about 122 of the 200 children survivors in the mid 80s. She named it that because Candles illuminate the dark corners of the world.

Forgiveness:
It wasn’t until a reporter in NY (I recall it was NY) asked if she would lecture to a group of doctors. She said yes. He then said… “I want you to bring one of the Nazi doctors with you†… it stopped her in her tracks as she has not faced any of the Nazi doctors. She was able to get a hold of a friend of Dr. Mengele, who was another Doctor who operated the gas chamber … (more on that later). She went to Germany.. fear totally paralyzing her with so many speaking German, a sound she hasn’t heard in 50 years (It was the ‘90s by now). She met with him and he was polite and very helpful to her. She felt that is when she could start to forgive. She wrote him a letter of forgiveness and when she handed it to him she realized that it was releasing her from a heavy weight she carried for over 50 years. She later told us that many of the Nazi doctors would go to the location and every year write their letters asking for the world to forgive them for what they did.

She started the CANDLES Holocaust Museum. CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center - Home.

To forgive is so powerful and can be so difficult. She had a man come up to her before it started who was a survivor of the camps and he was having a hard time forgiving, he still struggles with it.

Gas Chamber:
Bobo… I thought of your statements when she said “Akmademajad is a revisionistâ€.. again, interesting choice of words. She also said he was not the first revisionist. She then explained the gas chamber that this doctor operated. It was a clean steal room. No signs of death or smell. They filled the room to full capacity and shut the door. A vent at the top would open up and they would dump gravel like substance in the top. Vapor would come up and start to fill the room. People would scramble to get away from it, trampling each other. Whoever was the strongest would find their way on top of all the bodies piled up. The doctor would watch through a peephole and when that person was dead he knew they all were dead in a pile of mangled bodies.

In closing she left us with the words, “Never give upâ€

My feelings:
Forgiveness is hard to find sometimes. For me.. it can be very difficult to get to a place of forgiveness. I would heard stories of Nelson Mandela and think.. how can he possibly forgive. It was a hard for me to understand. I have worked hard at it for myself for a long time with certain individuals in my lifetime and even forgiving the person who just cut me off on the freeway. It’s much easier to be angry or not give it any thought to forgiveness.. but, after I realize and go through the emotions of forgiveness I find that I have much more tolerance for things. .. simple things.

Forgiveness is a way of freeing yourself from that person or event that took place.

Her speaking last night gave me a recheck on how I am forgiving of others. Did I really forgive them? Am I holding onto issues? All those questions went through my head afterwards.

Hearing her speak about what she has been through, the worst kind of inhuman treatment and how she overcame and to NEVER GIVE UP… gave me a new sense of strength in something I am going through right now. It was appropriate timing and I new it would be. I just thought it would be based on forgiveness.

NEVER GIVE UP!

I also was moved by her seeing the American Flag on the bomber plane. I hope many Americans understand that America is a beacon of hope for many around the world. It is their safe haven in their mind, a hope of a place where they can too, can be free.


So, I came home, with my eyes burning.. because I poked the Kleenex in my eyes one too many times. I had to go to bed…. I was missing my 8 year old terribly; he was at his dad’s house. After hearing how she was ripped from her family at only 10 years… a thought no parent ever wants to have. … So… naturally I had dreams about my son running from bad guys… sigh. I also had dreams about being in the rooms she described and watching her…. So,…. I didn’t sleep too well. ARGH!!!

NEVER GIVE UP! How appropriate is that for this board. NEVER GIVE UP! You can overcome anything!

Imagine that at 10 years old….. and she NEVER GAVE UP!

 

[WildFlower]

Hatterasguy: I do believe in hearing from our elders as they have so much life experiences and it’s fascinating to hear them. Much better than a history book.

LagunaLauren, She spoke of making sure it doesn’t happen again and that’s why she founded the CANDLES and speaks to people. She said there is a fine line for doctors to treat patients and to use them as guinea pigs. Interesting point that even today’s current doctors may be testing treatments on people without fully realizing the consequences of that treatment. Her concern made me think.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Incredible story, the woman is a legend. Speed+

 

[LagunaLauren]

WildFlower-Thanks so much for relaying the talk. Unbelievable the hope and perseverance of a 10-year old girl. Really puts things in perspective. Incredible to be able to forgive for such unbelievable atrocities. (wanted to give more rep++ for that last post, but I gotta spread the love around more first..) Thanks much.

 

[Bobo]

Wow

Rep++

 

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[randallg99]

Never forget.

I'll never meet some family members becuase of some ridiculous ideology spurn by maniacs, but I am grateful that people of all denominations can come to an understanding the "genocide" concept is very real.

The real terror is that the world hasn't learned from that experience and I feel especially terrible for many of the genocidal acts occuring in Africa and certain parts of Asia. These acts of horror this speaker spoke of are very real even today.

Such a shame, with as much publicity the holocaust victims have tried to bring to light that such crimes continue.

On a personal note, my great-grandfather faught for Germany during WW1 against the allies only to have his land along the Rhine stripped away from him where he and family made wine. His uniform and spiked helmet is still with the family today. Thankfully he had the foresight to leave and come to America. And the irony? His son (my grandfather) was on the front lines for the USA during WW2.

The people with numbers on their arms are becoming fewer by the minute.... Thank you, wildflower for sharing your experience with us.

 

[WildFlower]

Never forget.

I'll never meet some family members becuase of some ridiculous ideology spurn by maniacs, but I am grateful that people of all denominations can come to an understanding the "genocide" concept is very real.

The real terror is that the world hasn't learned from that experience and I feel especially terrible for many of the genocidal acts occuring in Africa and certain parts of Asia. These acts of horror this speaker spoke of are very real even today.

Such a shame, with as much publicity the holocaust victims have tried to bring to light that such crimes continue.

On a personal note, my great-grandfather faught for Germany during WW1 against the allies only to have his land along the Rhine stripped away from him where he and family made wine. His uniform and spiked helmet is still with the family today. Thankfully he had the foresight to leave and come to America. And the irony? His son (my grandfather) was on the front lines for the USA during WW2.

The people with numbers on their arms are becoming fewer by the minute.... Thank you, wildflower for sharing your experience with us.

Thank you!! Eva said that many people think her tattooed number was faded from time... she said it wasn't. It had always been that light because she fought them so hard that it took many to hold her down to even do it.

Both my grandfathers were in WWII and both traveled back on the Queen Mary. My Grandfather is in a picture on the ship. Today it's in Long Beach and is part museum and part hotel. It's very haunted! I have always wanted to stay on the ship!

 

[Lusches]

Many Germans should be ashamed of the things that happened. Hitler was democratically elected and almost everything that happened was foreseeable. He explained everything in his book "Mein Kampf" ("my fight").
What do most Germans say when they hear stories about the Holocaust or other bad things that happened in 1939-1945 ?
"We, the Germans, didn't do anythings to anybody".
We blame the Nazis for the thing they have done, but in reality we were the nazis !

Two weeks ago I talked to some old people from the town I live in. They were happy about the war ! They sat in front of their "Volksempfänger", a little radio which provided the NS-propaganda, and were thrilled about the declaration of war on poland.
Nowdays such a szenario seems very, very unrealistic, but don't count your chickens before they are hatched.
Lets lern from the foretime and let such a event never happen again :smx9:

 

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[hatterasguy]

Well its more complicated than that, you can't paint it with a broad brush.

The National Socialist movement did do a lot of economic good in Germany before the war. Germany was in shambles when they came into power in the early 30's and they put people to work, and put food on the table. From reading the memoirs of German officers they warmed up to them because they rebuilt the military. Guderian wouldn't have gotten the support to build his Panzer divisions without Hitlers support. The German military was very unpolitcal early in the war, and the overs in charge who were the Nazi's killed.
Blomberg-Fritsch Affair - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Many Germans were understandably pissed off about the Treaty of Versailles, and when the Nazi's got them out from under that they appreciated it.

 

[Lusches]

Everyone was able to get a job: It was a job creation scheme.
What happens if you use 10 workers for a work that could be easily done by 1 or 2 workers ? In the long term you'll run up to deps :smxG:
Thats what happened to Hitler. Germany was in dept and he wanted to start a war to mask the problems before the civil population noticed them.

Hitler broke the treaty of versaille many times befor the war. The Allies could have easily stoped him but they were too war-weary and didn't want to rist another war.

 

[hatterasguy]

Hitler didn't start the war to simply solve the labor problem. It's really all laid out in his book, he wanted to kill all the undermenschen to create more living space for the German race. To do this he planned on depopulating from the Eastern borders of the greater Reich to the Volga river. They wouldn't kill everyone though, I think they planned on using the Slav's as slaves.

He intended on going to war in the east since before he came to power. Its the war in the west that surprised him, he didn't count on that.


The French alone could have easily stopped him up until oh probably 1936-37 or so. The Germany are was still very weak and a few French divisions moving into the Ruhr to secure it and enforce the treaty would have stopped him.

I find it a fascinating period in European history, more from a military standpoint. WW2 was really the first "modern" war. Things like the assualt rifle, ICBM, nuclear warhead, jet fighter, and tank come into their own. The Germans also re wrote the book on land warfare. You had great thinkers like Erich von Manstein and Heinz Guderian who really changed how army's menuver in the field.

 

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