The Amazing Deens

The Netherlands Holocaust is the genesis of this story. It studies several generations of Jewish families and how they fared during WW2. My mother was a survivor and shortly after liberation left Holland, with her first child, for good. Life in Australia was very rewarding and had a profound and positive influence on that child. I was that child and at around 40 years of age discovered, by sheer luck and persistence, mother's dark secret. During her journey to escape from the...
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The Netherlands Holocaust is the genesis of this story. It studies several generations of Jewish families and how they fared during WW2. My mother was a survivor and shortly after liberation left Holland, with her first child, for good. Life in Australia was very rewarding and had a profound and positive influence on that child. I was that child and at around 40 years of age discovered, by sheer luck and persistence, mother's dark secret. During her journey to escape from the murderous clutches of Dutch collaborators, she was protected by many people who felt it their responsibility to protect the "chosen people". I discovered who they were and with my immediate family travelled to Amsterdam to witness their posthumous recognition as Righteous Among the Nations. I discovered that many of their descendants had their own unique stories of survival. We shared stories and through these, have enduring and close relationships. Seventy years after liberation by the Canadians, I spoke at an annual rally in the Netherlands about what freedom meant to me. This was a defining moment and a fitting conclusion to my 30-year journey of discovery.