Rachel Hoch, an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor, was born in Poland, and currently living in Israel, in Chafetz Chaim. Hoch, a Holocaust survivor, was a very young girl during the Holocaust, but she remembers the events in almost exact detail. Rachel Hoch’s story is not simple, like many other stories of Holocaust survivors. She says they were treated like beasts. She suffered from cold, hunger, and disease. Unfortunately, she lost her parents during the Holocaust.
Rachel was born into a large family of two sisters and three brothers. She was born in 1935 in Poland. Rachel lived there for only four years, until 1939. The family fled Poland when the Holocaust began. Rachel was then a young girl, only 4-years-old. Hoch’s family fled Poland to Russia, where they remained for six months. From Russia, they were exiled to Siberia. To get to Siberia, they were sent by train, “by trains of beasts freight, without windows, without water, in the cold,” says Rachel.
The whole family contracted typhus, which was very common at the time.Rachel’s parents died as a result of the disease. Rachel, her brothers, and her sister survived despite the illness. Rachel came with her brothers and her sister to the convent after recovering from typhus. In the convent, they were obliged to pray to Jesus. People who would not pray were expelled from the monastery, into the street, into the hands of the Nazis. Therefore, she explains, they prayed.
At one point, Rachel no longer remembers when the Americans arrived. They were looking for Jewish children, “they took us to Afghanistan, Pakistan …” says Rachel. Then began their journey to Israel. Rachel and her sister came to India via Pakistan, where they stayed for half a year. From India, they both boarded a ship to Egypt. From Egypt, they sail to Haifa. Their brother was already in Israel. The trauma from the convent left its marks on him, so he demanded that they only come to a religious place. That is how Rachel immigrated to Israel to the settlement of Chafetz Chaim.
The Chasdei Naomi organization, which supports and assists thousands of Holocaust survivors, came to Rachel Hoch with enriched food baskets and shopping vouchers to make her happy. The association works to help needy Holocaust survivors, provides them with: groceries, heating products during the winter, and of course, always attentive and takes care of their needs.Chasdei Naomi works for Holocaust survivors, the elderly, and the needy. All projects take place thanks to the broad heart of the public and their contributions.
Chasdei Naomi invites you to donate and take part in its activities for Holocaust survivors. Together we will not forget the Holocaust survivors and the horrors they went through.
More information about Chasdei Naomi here
