Story perspectives

Holocaust Letters Donated to Yad Vashem Preserve Love Story

4/11/2026

Center

Idit Papa's Letters

Idit Papa and Meir Hirschfeld, a young Orthodox couple in Hungary, exchanged letters during the Holocaust that sustained hope amid forced labor and hiding, helping them survive and marry after the war.
At 101, Idit Papa donated around 100 wartime letters to Yad Vashem with her children, coinciding with Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Yad Vashem's Gathering the Fragments initiative aims to preserve such stories as the number of survivors dwindles.

Left

Survivors Honor Resilience

Yad Vashem will pre-record the Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony focusing on "The Jewish Family During the Holocaust."
The event will feature Holocaust survivors lighting memorial torches and sharing their stories.
Saadia Bahat survived multiple camps, and Haviva Burst hid during the Nazi invasion.
Avigdor Neumann and Moshe Harari recount harrowing experiences, and the ceremony aims to honor resilience while preserving these personal narratives as survivors decrease.

History

Historical Context

The Holocaust, which resulted in the murder of approximately six million Jews from 1941 to 1945, ended with the liberation of concentration camps in 1945. Yad Vashem, established in 1953, has documented over two million testimonies from survivors, emphasizing the importance of preserving these narratives as the number of survivors declines, ensuring future generations understand the Holocaust's profound impact.

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Idit Papa's Letters

Idit Papa and Meir Hirschfeld, a young Orthodox couple in Hungary, exchanged letters during the Holocaust that sustained hope amid forced labor and hiding, helping them survive and marry after the war.
At 101, Idit Papa donated around 100 wartime letters to Yad Vashem with her children, coinciding with Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Yad Vashem's Gathering the Fragments initiative aims to preserve such stories as the number of survivors dwindles.

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