Rose Girone, the world’s oldest known Holocaust survivor, has passed away at the age of 113. Born in 1912 in southeastern Poland, Girone lived through eight decades of war and persecution under German and Japanese rule.
As a child, Girone moved to Hamburg, Germany with her Jewish family. In 1937, she married Julius Mannheim, but when he was deported to Buchenwald concentration camp in central Germany, another Nazi soldier intervened, sparing Girone’s life due to her pregnancy.
Girone gave birth to her daughter Reha in 1938 and used the opportunity to escape with her husband by obtaining Chinese visas. They left Germany for Shanghai, where they were met with a Japanese-occupied port, forcing them into a ghetto.
However, it was during this period that Girone discovered her talent for knitting, which became an essential source of strength and income throughout her life. She later moved to the United States, working as a knitting instructor and eventually opening her own store in Queens.
Girone’s survival experience taught her valuable lessons about resilience and hope. “Nothing is so bad that something good shouldn’t come out of it,” she said. Her story serves as an inspiration to others, particularly Holocaust survivors still living today. With only 14,000 remaining Holocaust survivors in the US, Girone’s passing marks a significant loss, but her legacy lives on through her remarkable life and unwavering spirit.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/27/us/rose-girone-obit/index.html