Holocaust survivor celebrates her 104th birthday in front of the Western Wall in Jerusalem with 400 of her descendants
- Shoshana Ovitz, 104, survived the Auschwitz concentration camp 74 years ago
- The Holocaust survivor celebrated in Jerusalem with 400 of her descendants
- Ovitz’s granddaughter said it ‘wasn’t easy’ to organise the large celebration
A Holocaust survivor celebrated her 104th birthday in Jerusalem surrounded by 400 of her descendants.
Shoshana Ovitz, survived the horrors at the Auschwitz concentration camp 74 years ago, and was separated from her mother who was killed by Nazi doctor Joseph Mengele.
The 104-year-old, had one simple request for her birthday celebrations, she wanted all her descendants to come together at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, as reported by Israeli news site Walla.
And approximately 400 flocked to celebrate the centenarian’s birthday at the holy site.
A happy Shoshana Ovitz clutching the hand of a family member at her 104th birthday celebrations
The 104-year-old, had one simple request for her birthday celebrations, she wanted all her descendants to come together at the Western Wall in Jerusalem
Even the 400 or so people at the gathering on Wednesday last week were not all of them. Some people were unable to attend because they were abroad
Pnina Friedman, Ovitz’s eldest granddaughter, said ‘it wasn’t easy’ to organise the celebration.
She added: ‘We don’t have an exact number, but there are about 400 grandchildren and descendants here.’
‘It wasn’t easy to organize such a one-time event. We started sending out emails, messages and making phone calls. It was important for us to contact everyone.
‘She asked us to put together a list of all the names of the grandchildren and great-grandchildren so that she could look and pray for them.’
Even the 400 or so people at the gathering on Wednesday last week were not all of them. Some people were unable to attend because they were abroad.
‘We’re missing about 10% of them.’ added Friedman.
After the Holocaust Ovitz met the man who would later become her husband, Dov Ovitz. His wife and four daughters were killed in the genocide.
The couple searched for missing relatives and lived in Austria, before eventually settling in Haifa.
They had two daughters and two sons.