Mrs. Bartkowski has a great grandmother who has survived the holocaust. The holocaust killed millions of people and it is impressive to survive.  

  The holocaust started in 1938, but there is much disagreement on what exact date it had started and was the single most traumatic event for the Jewish. German troops had invaded Austria.  

     According to Sophomore Claire Priebe, “Since the holocaust had killed millions of people, it is impressive to survive, or even to make it past the first day.” They split people up just by looking at them and deciding if they look strong or not. If they’re not strong, they get thrown in the gas chambers. People don’t know which side you are on until they start putting people in the gas chambers or realize you’re safe.  

     According to the US Holocaust memorial museum, you must make it through so many challenges, from the Germans trying to kill you, to other people attacking you for food because they’re so hungry. They gave you very little food, in hopes you’d die, and had to travel through any weather condition with old very little clothing, and usually no shoes.  

  According to the US Holocaust memorial museum, some got split from their family in the very beginning, and some lost them throughout the journey, it was hard to go on, but some made it through on their own. Taking care of yourself after losing family is hard, but people kept going.  

     According to the book, Night, if the Germans saw you with new shoes or clothes, they would take them from you. Some people tried to make their clothes and shoes look dirty if they did have new shoes or clothes. Germans soldiers were very strict about everything and you were always at risk of losing everything.  

      According to the National Institutes of Health, some survivors have PTSD to this day because of injuries, and traumatic experiences and sights they saw during the holocaust. That can lead to drug addiction, and homelessness. It is awful how some people who have suffered terribly have to keep suffering.  

     According to freshman Valorie Radel, “People need to respect the survivors of the holocaust and realize all they’ve been through.” According to Radel, survivors deserve to be respected for all they’ve worked through and how they never gave up.  

  Mrs. Bartkowski, a special ed teacher, has seen the guest speaker and she is her great grandmother. Bartkowski states that “The speaker talked about her journey, how she lost her family, and how it has affected her now.”  

  According to Bartkowski, you could see the emotion in the speaker as they talked about what happened. “It makes me rethink how good we all have it,” says Bartkowski.   

  According to Bartkowski, the speaker also talks about what her life is like now that the holocaust is over. As the speaker was speaking, you can see how it has affected her ever since the holocaust.