Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

Vera Gissing - April 22, 2006

Sharing Story

So you had told your daughter about your experience.

A little bit, a little bit, not--I didn't, I didn't, sort of, want to burden them in any way. But I think, I think it was then that the seeds of indecision--but, sort of, writing my book came into my mind. This was strengthened in 1985, when the um, in 1985 it was forty years from the end of the war. And I uh, managed to arrange a reunion of the Czech school in the hotel which used to be our home. And my uh, job was to--was publicity so that we could find as many children in various countries--of course, we're all grown up--as possible. And uh, I, sort of, contacted many uh, of the, well the newspapers uh, the--and, and I, I, I put some articles also in--queries in America--well, everywhere. Because we were scattered--we had scattered. And um, anyway, on that first reunion, I think, I found about fifty children all together. And uh, dif...one of things I did, I was asked by the Woman's Hour which--because by then I was with them and I was on a very good uh, we had a good relationship from the time I was in Prague. Incidentally that uh, I gave the talk as an unknown woman, because I wouldn't--didn't dare give my name in case I got some of my friends in Czecho into trouble. And it was uh, voted the best program of the year with uh, Dame Sybil Thorndike and uh, what's his name, Chevalier, Maurice Chevalier. And all ??? Czech refugee and it was broadcasted into every, every country.


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