BORN in a concentration camp in April 1945, a Holocaust survivor is sharing her story to remind younger generations about the dangers of intolerance.
Now 73, Eva Clarke works with the Holocaust Educational Trust and will be sharing her story with audiences in County Durham as part of events put on to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.
Mrs Clarke, and her mother Anka, were the only members of their family to survive the Holocaust, with 15 members of their relatives murdered at Auschwitz-Birkenau, including her father, Bernd, who was shot just a week before the liberation of the camp in January 1945, and three of her grandparents.
Eva's parents, Anka and Bernd
The mother and daughter, who was born at Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria, survived thanks to the liberation of the camp three days after Eva was born on an open cart, with no medical assistance, weighing just three pounds.
Mrs Clarke, a mother-of-two who lives in Cambridge, has previously spoken about her family’s story at Durham Cathedral.
Her parents, who married in 1940, were sent to a ghetto outside Prague in 1941, where they worked for three years before Bernd was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Not knowing his destination, Anka chose to follow him and arrived at the camp in October 1944. At the time she was pregnant with Eva, but as it was not visible, she was selected for slave labour near Dresden.
By the spring of 1945, the Nazis were retreating and Anka was one of the prisoners taken to Mauthausen, where she went into labour upon seeing where she was.
Ida and Stanislav Kauder, Eva's grandparents, who died in Auschwitz
The camp was liberated three days later and after the war, the mother and daughter returned to Prague, emigrating to the UK in 1948.
Mrs Clarke is speaking at Durham Cathedral tomorrow, at 1pm, and at Bishop Auckland Town Hall at on Saturday and will be sharing her story of rebuilding her life in post-war Britain.
Eva, aged six, pictured with her mother, Anka, in Cardiff
Charlotte Rowbotham, head of education at Durham Cathedral, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome Eva Clarke back to the cathedral, following her fascinating testimony in 2015. This time Eva will be sharing more of her own personal story which is one of tremendous courage, focusing on how she rebuilt her life in post-war Britain.
“Eva’s authentic first-hand account of holocaust survival is certain to motivate future generations to speak out against intolerance and is one not be missed."
The event in Bishop Auckland also features performances by pupils from King James 1 Academy and The Hermitage Academy.
An exhibition at the town hall will feature accounts of other genocides, including stories from Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Dafur, as well as a display explaining the Durham Light Infantry’s involvement in the liberation of Bergen–Belsen death camp with testimonies from both liberators and the liberated.
Events will take place between 10am and 3.30pm.
Tickets for the talk and school performances at Bishop Auckland Town Hall are free, but bookable in advance. For further information, to book tickets and to view opening times, visit www.bishopaucklandtownhall.org.uk.
No tickets are required for the event in Durham Cathedral.
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