Holocaust survivors have volunteered at the Museum on a regular basis across the institution—engaging with visitors, sharing their personal histories, serving as tour guides, translating historic materials, and more, since the Museum opened. Their presence has been an invaluable asset, and their contributions vital to the Museum’s mission.
Learn about volunteering at the Museum.
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Born: January 9, 1926, Vacha, Germany
Died: January 2, 2023, Rockville, MD
Susan was born 9 January 1926 in Vacha, Germany, a small Thuringian town where her family had lived for more than 400 years. Her father, Hermann, owned a general store and her mother, Bertha, managed the home and took care of Susan and her younger sister, Brunhilde (b. 1928). The Strauss family was one of about twenty Jewish families living in Vacha in the years leading up to the war.
Learn moreBorn: February 2, 1918, Lodz, Poland
Died: March 25, 2014, Rockville, Maryland
Herman Taube was born to Jewish parents in Lodz, Poland in 1918. Orphaned at an early age, he was brought up by his religious grandfather. In prewar Lodz, Herman became a yeshiva student. During the war, Herman lived as an exile in Uzbekestan. He also served as a medic in the Second Polish Army and was stationed with them in Majdanek.
Learn moreBorn: August 11, 1941 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Robert Frederick Teitel was born on August 11, 1941 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, more than a year after Nazi Germany occupied the country. His father, Abraham Manjoe Teitel, was an engineer and a master chess player. Abraham, his parents, and his older siblings immigrated to the Netherlands from what is today Poland by way of Vienna during World War I. Robert’s mother, Claire Donsbach, held a position as a secretary before opening her own photography studio. She immigrated to the Netherlands from Düsseldorf, Germany, before the Nazis came to power.
Learn moreBorn: March 4, 1939 in Zagreb, Yugoslavia
Ayana Touval was born Ayana Horovic in Zagreb, Yugoslavia on March 4, 1939. Her father, Ernest, managed Nashichka, a successful timber company. Her mother, Herta, was a piano teacher. She had been a student at the Academy of Music in Zagreb. The family lived a comfortable life surrounded by a large extended family that also lived in Zagreb.
Learn moreBorn: March 21, 1939, Brussels, Belgium
Josie Traum was born Josiane Aizenberg in Brussels, Belgium on March 21, 1939 into a traditional Jewish home to Fajga “Fanny” Orenbuch Aizenberg and Jacques “Jack” Aizenberg. Jacques worked as a tailor and Fanny was a clothing designer who created clothes for many prominent Belgians, including the Belgian royal family.
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Born: March 22, 1929, Vienna, Austria
Died: February 26, 2020, Silver Spring, MD
Alfred “Freddie” Traum was born in Vienna, Austria into a traditional Jewish family. World War I left Freddie’s father, Elias, severely disabled with arthritis, and he barely left the apartment. Freddie’s mother, Gita, therefore, was often out of the apartment for business. Freddie and his father spent many afternoons together where Freddie learned from his positive outlook and his determination to overcome life’s hardships.
Learn moreBorn: October 1, 1924, Cracow, Poland
Died: March 25, 2004, Baltimore, Maryland
Eve Kristine Vetulani was born to a Catholic family in Cracow, Poland. Her father was a professor at Jagiellonian University. Her mother took care of Kristine.
Learn moreBorn: May 27, 1929, Bad Kreuznach, Germany
Susan Warsinger was born Susi Hilsenrath on May 27, 1929 in Bad Kreuznach, a city in western Germany. Born to Israel and Annie Hilsenrath, Susi was the eldest of three children. Mr. Hilsenrath owned a successful linen store, and Mrs. Hilsenrath took care of Susi and her brothers, Joseph and Ernest.
Learn moreBorn: September 22, 1935, Vienna, Austria
Henry Weil was born Heinz Weil on September 22, 1935, in Vienna, Austria. Henry’s father, Hugo, worked in a leather goods store owned by his uncle Philipp Weil. His mother, Maria “Marishka” née Springer, cared for Henry and their home. The Weils were an observant Jewish family, attending synagogue regularly. Henry had many cousins living close by and spent his childhood riding tricycles and playing games with them in the courtyard of his apartment building.
Learn moreBorn: January 28, 1929, VEĽKÁ POĽANA, Czechoslovakia
Died: June 30, 2023, Rockville, MD
Martin “Marty” Weiss was born Meier Weiss on January 28, 1929 in Veľká Poľana, Czechoslovakia to Jacob and Golda Weiss. Jacob was a subsistence farmer and a meat distributor, and Golda managed their orthodox Jewish household and raised their nine children (Mendl, Issac, Ellen, Cilia, Moshe, Hannah, Marty, Esther, and Monica). Czechoslovakia had become an independent democracy after World War I, and the Weiss family were proud citizens of the newly-formed nation.
Learn moreListen to or read Holocaust survivors’ experiences, told in their own words through oral histories, written testimony, and public programs.