MY MUM THE HOLOCAUST SPEAKER

In November 1945, my mum, Nurith, age 5, arrived in England from Palestine. As a little girl, she was able to speak five languages, but unfortunately, not one of them was English. Her first memories of this country were the cold, how awful the food tasted and her inability to converse.
She had been living on a kibbutz with my Grandma and Grandpa, how idyllic you might think, living as part of a community in the sunshine, growing and sharing food. It was…
But my Grandma was German and Jewish and was forced to flee from Germany to Palestine after an altercation with a German officer, who was not only a mere boy but had once been her friend. Sadly, our family were directly affected by the holocaust, suffering terrible loss both in and out of concentration camps.

 My Grandma was advised on arrival in England not to speak German, and thus her story was kept quiet. ‘You need to fit in and make a life for yourselves here. Over the years, we have all asked Mum to document our history, but the time has never been quite right. Recently, my brother-in-law, who is a history teacher, finally persuaded her to put pen to paper, so with the help of my Dad and after 70 years, my Mum has finally told her story.

Not only is it now archived, never to be forgotten, but Mum also presented the story to over 200 Year Nine pupils. This, for a lady who has never spoken in front of an audience before, was totally daunting. Although the content was highly emotional, Mum carried it out beautifully with poise and grace and was able to engage each and everyone of her audience. No mean feat!
I’m so proud of Mum for not only writing the story but taking on the challenge of presenting it too. She faced the fear and did it anyway, proving that you can fulfil remarkable achievements at any age.

With love,

Glynnis x