Holocaust survivor shares story with Team MDL

Published April 17, 2015
By Airman 1st Class Joshua King
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst Public Affairs

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST- -- "My children and grandchildren are my personal victory over Hitler," said Dr. Charles Rojer, Holocaust survivor and guest speaker at the 2015 Days of Remembrance event, held here April 16.

Joint base members gathered for Days of Remembrance, an annual event to remember the atrocities of the Holocaust and to make a conscience effort to avoid it happening again.

Rojer came to share the story of his childhood, a story of both sadness and triumph, a story of survival throughout the Holocaust.

At the event Rojer told service members how his family tried to escape anti-Semitism and the Nazis by fleeing to the south of France when he was a small child.

The train they were on was stopped by invading Germans and they were forced to return home.

He related the emotional story of when his sisters were sent to safety in a convent. Rojer's parents were able to smuggle him into a home with a dozen other children before his parents were captured.

The children and two young women protecting them had to continue moving from small town to small town in Belgium with assistance from the resistance underground so they wouldn't be caught.

"Two of the children started to teach us German," recalled Rojer. "We learned how to say 'I'm going for a walk in my top hat,' I didn't know if it would help but it gave me a feeling of security."

Rojer was fortunate - he and the family were able to stay hidden until Allied forces liberated the area of Belgium they were hiding in.

"The first vehicle that entered my sight was that beautiful jeep with the beautiful white star on the side," said Rojer.

After the war, Rojer was put into an orphanage.

"Unfortunately my mother, my father, my aunt, two cousins and grandparents were taken to Auschwitz and exterminated," said Rojer mournfully, listing the loved ones he lost.

He had no idea if his sisters were still alive.

When a lady visiting the orphanage saw Rojer, she told him of seeing a little girl who resembled him - he went to the house the next day and there found his sister.

Rojer and his sisters were able to immigrate to Philadelphia, where Rojer went to school and became a surgeon.

He had three children, whom he calls his "personal victory over Hitler," and began sharing his story.

The audience was silent while Rojer spoke, only breaking the stillness to share in his sorrow or joy with a collective laugh or groan.

"I felt like he was telling a story from a movie," said Donna Hughes, a local teacher and audience member. "It seemed so surreal."

"He has a unique perspective on the events of the Holocaust," agreed Master Sgt. Adam Wurtz, 818th Contingency Response Group tactics, training and readiness superintendent and event organizer. "He has a very powerful story and powerful message."
The Holocaust is considered one of the most horrific violations of human rights in living memory. While everyone may know what happened, survivors like Rojer can help audience members understand things on a more personal level.

"I have been speaking to audiences for at least 40 years," said Rojer. "I thought that the speech I had to offer, the experience of anti-Semitism and genocide, would quickly subside in terms of importance. I'm sorry to say that over the years there has indeed been a resurgence of these terrible events throughout the world."

"You can't learn from history if you forget it," said Wurtz.