Holocaust survivor shares story of his life with students

ROSEBURG, Ore. (AP) - Holocaust survivor Andreas Goldner, 80, is acutely aware of how lucky he is to have collected eight decades of life.

The fact that Goldner could stand in St. Paul Lutheran Church Wednesday afternoon and give a presentation on the Holocaust to John C. Fremont eighth-graders is a miracle in itself.

Goldner is Jewish, and he lived the first five years of his life in Germany as Adolf Hitler came to power. Goldner’s father had already lost his job in a state-run hospital because he was Jewish, so when a friend offered to arrange travel documents from Europe to the U.S., Goldner’s family jumped at the opportunity.

Goldner escaped to the United States on Nov. 9, 1938. That night would become known as Kristallnacht, or the night of broken glass, when members of the Nazi party attacked Jewish-owned homes, businesses and synagogues.

“I told you I live on borrowed time,” Golden told the room of attentive students. “I have survivor’s guilt. I have a responsibility to 6 million people. I survived. I don’t know why, but I was lucky.”

That’s the reason Goldner, who now lives in Merlin, has been traveling to schools and parishes for the past 25 years sharing his story of survival. It’s also why Goldner has been an active participant in civil rights movements.

“I believe you do what you think is right,” Goldner said. “You live for those who suffered. You stand by your principles because that’s all you got.”

In rural Baden-Baden, Germany, Goldner said he lived an idyllic life. His home bordered a forest where he grew up playing. When the family needed milk, Goldner walked outside with a pail and waited for a farmer and his cow to walk by.

With blond curly hair, Goldner was once mistaken for an Aryan by a newspaper photographer.

“I want you to know how difficult it is to stereotype people,” Goldner said. Hitler wanted to create a pure race, but drawing racial lines isn’t that simple, Goldner said.

For instance, after Goldner moved to Washington Heights in New York City, his elementary-school peers mistook him for a Nazi and bullied him. Another student from the Philippines was mistaken for being Japanese, so he, too, was bullied. Eventually a black student stood up for Goldner, and the bullying ended.

“I hope you all learn not to listen to what people say about others and to learn for yourself,” Goldner said. “We all have prejudices, but we have to learn how to overcome them.”

Goldner didn’t witness the horrors of Kristallnacht or the concentration camps, but by the time his family arrived in the United States, Goldner’s uncle had been killed. Despite this tragic history, Goldner makes a yearly trip to Germany.

This is the second time Goldner has visited Fremont to share his story. He visited Joseph Lane Middle School earlier this year.

Goldner’s presentation complements Fremont’s World War II history unit.

“You can learn about the Holocaust through books and photographs and literature, but he’s the real thing,” eighth-grade teacher Kathi Swanson said. “This is a person, a witness, a piece of evidence for students to see.”

Students came to the presentation with questions for Goldner.

“I learned a lot about the different work camps,” said eighth-grader Benjamin McNew. “I didn’t know they were worked to death. I realize that history repeats itself, but I can’t think that this could happen again because it’s too horrible.”

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Information from: The News-Review, https://www.nrtoday.com