With the Nazi occupation of Kovno (Lithuania), her life changed forever. Zlata Santocki Sidrer was Jewish, but she survived the horrors of the Holocaust. Gone were her normal life and her teenage dream of becoming a doctor. Instead, she witnessed untold deprivations, massacres, imprisonment, hunger, and slave labor before being transported to the Stutthof Concentration Camp. Her story of the death march is a testament to her fighting spirit and the limits of human endurance. Yet the challenges did not end with liberation.

Lovingly compiled from recorded interviews and researched by her eldest daughter, Ettie, this is an account of a remarkably resilient woman who raised herself out of the ashes after unimaginable hardship and sorrow. She found love and happiness where none could be expected—a secret marriage in the ghetto, escapes, dangerous border crossings, reunifications, and life-saving friendships. Ettie’s quest to learn more about her ancestry led her to Lithuania and Poland–in her mother’s footsteps. The author reflects on the impact of her family’s experiences on her own beliefs and behaviors, thereby adding to the literature about Second Generation and transgenerational trauma. In these memoirs, she honors her family by telling their amazing story of survival and collects evidence to corroborate their painful history.

RSVP to our Program Director, Zachary Graulich at 516-571-8040 ext. 103, email zacharygraulich@holocaust-nassau.org.