"I thought Life Was Beautiful" – The Story of Holocaust Survivor Eva Erben

Eva Erben was born in Děčín, Czechoslovakia and was the only daughter of Marta and Jindřich Löwidt. Later, Eva's family moved to Prague, where she grew up. With the occupation of the Czech Republic by Nazi Germany and the establishment of the "Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia" in 1939, the new regime implemented anti-Jewish policies that included arrests, forced labor, decrees and restrictions in all areas of life. In December 1941, Eva and her parents were sent to the Theresienstadt (Terezin) ghetto, where they lived until their deportation to Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1944. From Auschwitz-Birkenau, Eva and her mother were sent to a labor camp and later taken on death marches. Eva survived and reached the Czech village of Postřekov, where she found refuge with Kryštof and Ludmila Jahn, who saved her life. After liberation, Eva returned to Prague, studied nursing and later met Petr Erban, her future husband. The couple immigrated to Israel in 1948. Eva and Petr had children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Eva is a witness who tells her story in to a variety of audiences in Israel and the world over.