92-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor Breaks Decades of Silence

At 92 years old, Rose Gelbart is doing something that once seemed impossible: talking about the three years she spent running for her life as a child during the Holocaust.

For decades after World War II ended, survivors like Gelbart stayed silent about their experiences. Adults believed children would heal faster if they simply didn't speak about the horrors they'd witnessed. "They thought if you don't talk about it, they'll forget it," Gelbart explained. "But it was there."

On Thursday, Gelbart and her husband Arthur, 97, both Holocaust survivors, spoke at events in Lorain, Ohio. Just hours before taking the stage at the Lorain Palace Theatre, Rose reflected on what her younger self endured.

From the lobby of the Ariel Broadway Hotel, surrounded by books including one featuring her childhood photo, Gelbart remembered living in ghettos and constantly fleeing throughout Poland. She recalled armed guards searching for Jews, never knowing where she'd sleep or who might help hide her and her mother. Many family members, friends, and neighbors didn't survive, but Rose and her mother evaded capture until liberation in 1945.

After the war, life resumed with school and piano lessons, almost as if nothing had happened. But the memories remained, unspoken and unprocessed. No one offered psychological support to the child survivors. Some children had been hidden in suitcases or under beds, but nobody talked about their trauma.

Why This Inspires

Breaking that silence took courage that Gelbart has now found in her nineties. By sharing her story publicly, she's helping ensure that history isn't forgotten and that future generations understand what hatred can cost. Her willingness to revisit painful memories serves a purpose greater than herself.

Thursday wasn't Gelbart's first time speaking about her past, and she continues urging audiences not to let these memories fade.

Two survivors in their nineties are proving that it's never too late to find your voice and use it to teach others.