The Mittens

The Personal History of Yvonne Koch
1. Auflage 2021
ISBN: 978-3-946991-10-6
Verlag: Stiftung niedersächsische Gedenkstätten

Buch, Englisch, Band 1, 60 Seiten, Format (B × H): 150 mm x 210 mm, Gewicht: 144 g

Reihe: Bergen-Belsen Kleine Reihe

A pair of colourful knitted wool mittens in the permanent exhibition of the Bergen-Belsen Memorial commemorate the story of Yvonne Koch, who was deported from Slovakia at the age of 10 in the autumn of 1944 and was liberated in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp on 15 April 1945. Yvonne Koch recounts her own life story, Thomas Rahe explains the historical background, and Diana Gring discusses the significance of the mittens as an exhibit.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Koch, Yvonne

Weitere Mitwirkende

Rahe, Thomas

Gring, Diana

Leseproben

My 75th birthday in 2008 was the motivation
for me to write down my memoirs.
I did this mostly to introduce and tell my
grandchildren and their generation about
a terrible course of events in the 20th
century that is hardly even imaginable
in Europe today. I am very touched that
my grandchildren and the grandchildren
of my contemporaries are much more
interested in my memories than those of
my generation and their children – including
my own – whose interest is limited.
I would also like to pass on authentic
information to educators and workers in
youth organisations to support them in
their important and invaluable work.
From November 1944 until liberation
on 15 April 1945, as a 10/11-year-old child,
I was forced to experience the horrors of
the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.
Naturally, my account of my experiences
is fragmented, but there are countless
moments that are so present that it is as
if they had just occurred. I will explain
why mittens that were made for me by
a woman – a prisoner like me – were so
important to me and what made the pair
of mittens into a significant exhibit at the
Bergen-Belsen Memorial site.
My memories of this terrible time will
soon be history because the remaining
days of the remaining few survivors are
numbered. From today’s viewpoint, what
happened at that time in Europe is unimaginable.
Listening to the news today,
sadly, one hears more tales of senseless,
hate-motivated crimes from all corners of
the world.
What was unique in the National Socialist
regime was the extermination of
people and that this was brutally and inhumanely
planned with a perfect strategy
and organisation and was carried out with
the proverbial German thoroughness.
As in any commercial enterprise, there
were meticulous records kept. I had the misfortune of being caught up in this
barbaric machinery and I had the good
fortune to survive.

Über Autor(innen)

Koch, Yvonne
Yvonne Koch, 1934 in Žilina in der damaligen Tschechoslowakei geboren, erlebt die Verfolgung als Jüdin bereits als Kleinkind. 1939 verliert ihr Vater seine Stelle als Mediziner. Er arbeitet als freier Arzt, behandelt auch zwei untergetauchte jüdische Partisanen. Er wird denunziert. Kochs Eltern tauchen 1940 unter. Sie geben ihre Tochter in ein Klosterinternat. Eines Tages erscheinen Polizisten im Internat und versuchen, die Zehnjährige zu erpressen: »Wenn du sagst, wo dein Vater ist, kannst du bleiben.« Koch weiß nichts.
Am 7. Dezember 1944 wird sie nach Bergen-Belsen transportiert. Dort lebt sie in einer Baracke mit 60 älteren slowakischen Frauen. Die Befreiung Bergen-Belsens am 15. April 1945 erlebt Koch nicht. Sie liegt im Koma.
Bis Anfang 70 spricht Koch nicht über ihren Überlebenskampf. Später schreibt sie kleine Erinnerungen an das Lager auf. »Mein Vermächtnis ist, dass so etwas nie wieder passieren darf. Die Demokratie liegt in euren Händen!«, ruft die 86-Jährige den Jugendlichen zu.