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– Written by Rachel Geron, Head of Marketing
I’m a third-generation Holocaust survivor. My grandmother, Eva Behar – known to us simply as Nana – survived Auschwitz and Belsen. Growing up, she didn’t speak much about her experiences, and it wasn’t until my late twenties that Nana began sharing more about the horrors she witnessed and the story of her miraculous survival.
In 2015, I travelled to Bergen-Belsen along with the rest of my family. Together, we also walked the path Nana took from liberation to meeting my grandfather – a British RAF officer. It was deeply emotional to physically trace the steps that led to my family’s future.
But that wasn’t the end of the story. When I joined World Jewish Relief last year, I uncovered a connection I had never expected.
In my first few weeks, I learnt that World Jewish Relief was previously the Central British Fund (CBF), founded in 1933 to support Jewish people fleeing Nazi Europe. I was also introduced to the Archives Team, who are a group of remarkable volunteers returning valuable records and documents back to many of the 65,000 Jewish refugees we supported over this time. They told me that for decades, these records were lost and forgotten until a chance discovery in the garage of a care home in the 1980s revealed a treasure trove of documents. These files documented assistance provided to Jewish refugees before, during and after the Holocaust.
I was astounded to learn the archive includes registration slips for around 277,000 individuals, and in-depth case files for 65,000 — including many of the 10,000 Kindertransport children, the 732 child survivors known as “The Boys”, and the 4,000 men rescued and housed at the Kitchener Camp.
Before working here, I assumed World Jewish Relief’s focus was solely on Kindertransport survivors. I never imagined they might hold records about Nana, who arrived in the UK in 1946. But thanks to the brilliant Sharon Adler from our Archives Team, we found a registration slip – and with it, a story that confirmed so much of what Nana had told us.
The document listed Nana’s nationality as Czech. I knew she was Romanian, so at first this seemed like a mistake. But then I remembered: Nana once told us that during liberation, survivors were processed alphabetically by nationality. To avoid being last in line, she told the British she was Czech – a decision that may have saved her life.
The document also listed her address in Celle – the town where she met my grandfather after being moved from the displacement camp.
Seeing that slip for the first time was overwhelming and incredibly poignant for me and my family.
The documents in our archives are more than just slips of paper – they are important pieces of people’s lives and family history. And many families don’t even know they exist! Though they were only digitised in 2015, they hold incredible value for families like mine, and that’s why we are on a mission to reunite these records with descendants
Like World Jewish Relief, my personal values are deeply rooted in my heritage, and I am committed to continuing the legacy to help those in need, just as Nana was when she was liberated from Belsen on 15th April 2025 by the British.
This was just the first stage of my journey. Recently, I went on a visit to the Weiner Holocaust Library in London to see the documents they preserve and the connection to World Jewish Relief. It was here I learned about the Jewish Relief Unit, part of World Jewish Relief (then the Central British Fund), which assisted survivors in post-war Europe. One of whom was my Nana. I couldn’t believe it. Another connection!
She even wrote about it in her book, called My Story:
“The Jewish Relief Unit sent some people to help us, under the guidance of Lady Henriques. Lord and Lady Henriques were the people who brought the first Jews over from Europe….. There was a synagogue in Celle with a hall attached to it where Lady Henriques and her helpers formed a recreational club for the survivors. We received boxes of humanitarian aid with clothes and food sent from the UK.”
This is just my story but there are so many stories to be uncovered. My grandma was a remarkable lady, and her survival was her belief. She always taught me never to hate, and this is a message I teach my children.
You cannot go on hating, it’s impossible to live…. If people stopped hating, the world would be a better place.
For me, she represents my Jewish identity and the same Jewish values of World Jewish Relief: Tzedakah, Hesed, Tikkun Olam and Welcoming the Stranger, which guide our actions every day.
If you’re a second or third generation Holocaust survivor, I encourage you to reach out to our archives team and enquire for free today.
