Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, had a Jewish population of more than 75,000 in 1940. In all, at least 80 percent of the prewar Dutch Jewish community perished during the Holocaust. When I visited Shelley Lazarus in her home, she shared her story of survival.
“I was born May 17th, 1939 in Amsterdam. My father, Joseph Maykels, was an antique book dealer and my mother, Elizabeth Vanderhorst, was a designer of men’s clothing patterns. The Germans invaded the Netherlands one week before my first birthday on May 10, 1940. My father feared he would be apprehended by the Nazis and hid in a nearby monastery. My mother, on the other hand, was a native of Paterson, New Jersey and assumed being American-born would keep her from harm. My father came out of hiding when he found out that my grandparents were being arrested and deported. My parents and I were soon apprehended as well.”
Lazarus recalled being deported.
“My parents and I were first transferred to Westerbork. The camp was originally established in 1939 by the Dutch before the German invasion of the Netherlands. It began as a refugee camp for German Jewish refugees who had fled Nazi persecution. In 1942, German officials took over and transformed Westerbork into a transit camp for Dutch Jews. Westerbork became a site where Jews (including my family) were temporarily held before deportation to killing centers and other concentration camps. Only 5,000 Jews out of more than 100,000 who passed through Westerbork survived. From Westerbork we were deported to Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp. My mother and I were imprisoned in the women’s barracks where my mother worked in the kitchen. My father was confined to the men’s quarters. At night my mother would look through the barbed wire fence to get a glimpse of my father. One night a man approached the fence and handed my mother a note containing the address of a family that was caring for his child. He feared that he wouldn’t survive, and asked my mother to seek out the family if she survived. My father did not survive the war. My mother actually married the man who lived at that address following the war.”
Lazarus recalled the horrific conditions in the camp.
“The camp was unable to accommodate the sudden influx of thousands of prisoners and all the basic services. The lack of food, water and sanitation led to an outbreak of typhus. My mother came down with typhus and was suffering from the disease when the Germans decided to move us out of the camp. The Germans intended to drown us in the Elbe (one of Central Europe’s major rivers) and transferred us by train bound for the river. The train was intercepted by American and Canadian soldiers and my mother and I were saved. Out of 267 family members, only my mother, two cousins and I survived. Both of my cousins live in Israel.”
Lazarus reflected on life after liberation.
“Following liberation, my mother and I traveled home to Amsterdam where my mother was placed in a hospital to treat her bout with typhus. When I went to visit my mother, she was delirious from her illness and did not recognize me. She kept telling the hospital staff that I died during the war. My mother eventually recovered and recognized me again. During the time that my mother was treated, I remember walking in an open field and seeing a plane flying closely overhead. To this day I still have a fear of loud airplane engines. I also have a fear of elevators and basements due to my enclosed confinement during the war. HIAS assisted us with a place to live since our former home was occupied. After living in Amsterdam for a while, my mother and I moved to Haarlem, a port city located outside of Amsterdam in the northwest Netherlands. We lived in Haarlem for two years and I enrolled in school for the first time in my life.”
Lazarus recalled moving to America.
“My great aunt who lived in Paterson, New Jersey sponsored our move to the US. In Paterson, I completed my public education and became interested in art. As an artist my work includes watercolor paintings and sculpting. I met my first husband and we moved to Boston where we raised our two daughters. After my husband died I remarried and moved to Florida in 2003. My second husband died in 2013. 10 years ago I met my boyfriend, Irwin. I have four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.”
Lazarus shared her words of wisdom.
“Enjoy everyday to the fullest. I’m lucky to live in Florida where everything is green, colorful and clean.”
