On Wednesday, November 5, the Spence community had the unique opportunity to welcome to school author and Holocaust survivor Eva Schloss. Hosted by the History Department, Schloss served as the featured speaker for a special Upper School presentation, where she shared her heroic story before responding to a multitude of student questions.

Born in Vienna in 1929, Schloss moved to the Netherlands with her family after the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938. While living in Amsterdam, she became friends with her neighbor, another young Jewish girl, named Anne Frank. Schloss admired Frank for her self-confidence and maturity and the two often spent time together.

In 1944, both girls and their families were sent to concentration camps in Auschwitz after neighbors revealed their Jewish identities to Nazi authorities. Among the many who did not survive were Eva Schloss’s father, brother and friend—Anne Frank.

In 1945, Schloss was freed with her mother and returned to Amsterdam. Both having lost a partner, her mother, Elfriede, became close with Anne Frank’s father, Otto, and the two eventually married. The family eventually immigrated to London where they settled and where Schloss continues to live along with her husband and three daughters.

After years of painful silence, Eva Schloss began sharing her story of struggle, survival and hope in 1986. She has worked tirelessly since the publication of her first book, Eva’s Story, in 1988 to teach the lessons of the Holocaust to countless people around the world. She has also written two other books: The Promise and After Auschwitz.

Grade 9 in particular learned about the Holocaust in History class in advance of hosting the guest speaker. Schloss’s tale inspired the audience, teaching students and faculty alike lessons of perseverance and the importance of never forgetting our past.