Academy students recently had the opportunity to hear from Holocaust survivor George R. during special presentations held via Webex on April 27 and May 4. Born in Strasbourg, France, in 1933, George was nine years old when World War II and the Nazi occupation dramatically changed his childhood. Opening his presentation to students, faculty and staff, George asked a simple but profound question: “Where were you on your ninth birthday?” He then invited students to imagine what life was like for a child his age trying to survive during the Holocaust.
George shared how his family moved throughout France as conditions for Jewish families worsened during the war. His father, an engineer, later found work as a valet and doorman in Paris while his mother, a pharmacist, worked cleaning homes for a local family, the Lequiens. In 1942, George became seriously ill with a kidney infection and was hospitalized – what he later called “the first miracle” of his life. At a time when Jews in Nazi-occupied France were being arrested and deported to concentration camps, the extended hospitalization helped keep him hidden from Nazi authorities. Before his parents disappeared, they entrusted George’s safety, family photographs and important documents to Mrs. Lequien, who risked her own safety to help protect him.
After leaving the hospital, George lived briefly with the Lequien family before they arranged for him to stay at a Catholic orphanage willing to hide Jewish children. Using false identity papers, George remained there for four years while his parents were deported to Auschwitz, where they were murdered. After the war, George’s great-uncle, living in the United States, located him through correspondence with the Lequiens and arranged for George to immigrate to America in 1946. George eventually settled in Los Angeles and raised a family of his own.
During the student Q&A, George reflected on growing up, the tensions between his Jewish identity and his Catholic upbringing after being baptized as a child, and how conversations with his grandson helped him better understand the pain and sacrifice his parents endured. He emphasized that his mission today is to continue sharing his story with students and communities for as long as possible, reminding young people of the importance of empathy, remembrance and knowing their family histories.
George’s presentation left a lasting impact on the Punahou community and offered students a rare opportunity to learn directly from a living witness to history.