Rose Girone, the oldest living Holocaust survivor, has passed away at the age of 113. Born in Poland in 1912, she fled Nazi Germany with her husband and infant daughter after being forced into a Jewish ghetto in Shanghai. Despite facing unimaginable hardships, including two pandemics, Ms. Girone lived life with positivity and common sense. Her secret to longevity was attributed to dark chocolate and good children.
The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany notes that there are around 245,000 Jewish Holocaust survivors alive today. Rose Raubvogel’s passing reminds us of the importance of sharing the lessons of the Holocaust while we still have firsthand witnesses with us. Her life serves as an example of fortitude and resilience in the face of adversity.
Born to a family that started a costume business in Germany, Ms. Girone married Julius Mannheim in 1938 in an arranged marriage. After being sent to Buchenwald concentration camp, her husband handed over their shipping business to escape punishment. With a visa for Shanghai, they traveled with 20,000 other refugees and eventually settled in the United States.
Ms. Girone opened a knitting store and taught others how to knit, using it as a way to support herself and her family during difficult times. She married again in 1968 and continued working until she was 102 years old. Her daughter, Reha Bennicasa, remembered her grandmother’s words of wisdom, including “Growing old is fun, but being old is not fun” and “You have to wake up and have a purpose.”
Ms. Girone’s legacy serves as a reminder of the importance of preserving the lessons of the Holocaust for future generations.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/27/us/rose-girone-dead-holocaust-survivor.html