A six-year-old daughter separated from family. A husband separated from his wife.
Milena Roth and Franz Jägerstätter are only two of the millions of people that were affected by the Holocaust. Developmental Education Professor Jessica Bertrand read letters during the time period of the Holocaust during her lecture on Tuesday.
Before Bertrand discussed her topic, she warned the audience that her lecture was going to be “heart wrenching.” She gave a disclaimer that if anyone needed to leave the lecture hall to get air, she would not get offended.
“Prepare yourself mentally, emotionally, ” Bertrand said. “You will go on a journey that will make you a different person before you leave today.”
While reading through some of the letters, she had to stop reading them because she could not stop crying.
The first person Bertrand talked about was a six-year-old Czechoslovakian girl named Milena Roth. Roth was sent away from her family and home and taken to safety by the Kindertransport. She and ten thousand other Jewish children were rescued from the Holocaust and moved to England where they were placed with guardians.
Bertrand also talked about Jägerstätter, an Austrian conscientious objector to the war. His letters began with him writing to his wife, Fanni, where he joked about how horrible his aim was with a rifle.
His other letters discussed his training, but when time came for him to fight, he refused to fight. Jägerstätter was later executed on Aug. 9, 1943. He left behind his wife and three daughters.
