80 years ago today, my father was liberated from Plattling concentration camp

[Danmel]

By the US Army.
He weighed 89 pounds, had typhus and heard the nuns in the hospital say in German that "nothing would come of him."
He lived to come to New York, raise a family and welcome his first Jewish granddaughter in a baby naming ceremony on hitlers birthday.
I am grateful he did not live to see Trump.
We have to stay vigilant and loud during these perilous times.
Peace dad, I love and miss you.

[chowder66]

1. Thank you for sharing and I'm so glad your dad made it.

[TexLaProgressive]

2. Never forget

That was one of the sub camps of Flossenburg. My Dad was an infantry soldier who helped liberate at least one of the German death camps, maybe Plattling. He was horribly affected by the war and what he saw in the camps.

I'm glad your Grandfather survived and was able to have a family. It's probably good that my Dad and your Grandfather are not witnessing what's happening now.

Before it was liberated by the United States Army in April 1945, 89,964 to 100,000 prisoners passed through Flossenbürg and its subcamps

.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flossenb%C3%BCrg_concentration_camp

[Danmel]

3. It was my dad.

My grandparents, aunts and nephew were all murdered.

[wnylib]

13. .

[TexLaProgressive]

21. Idon't understand antisemitism, well,, prejudice dice in any fashion

Where I grew up, I never met a jewish person until my niid-teens. It was a middle aged couple a few houses from us. They were ever so mice to this Catholic boy. Then I met another Jeewish couple who lived near a friend, oonce again, ever so nice, with a wicked sense of humor.

This was frotunate as there was this asshole in USAF tech school who was a Jew from New Jersey. Because of my experience with those 4 Jewish people I mistakenly assumed it was a New Jersey thing, but I became friends with a young man and woman from New Jersey. I decided that guy in my barracks was just naturally an unpleasant person on his own..

My #3 son married an wonderful woman from Issrael who has given us 2 beautiful Jewish grandchildren.

[Danmel]

6. Thank you to your dad

I feel an enormous debt of gratitude to the soldiers who liberated the camps. My uncle Mendel, the only other immediate family member who survived was liberated by the Russian Red Army.

[mchill]

10. But the Russians were no better - or worse

I can’t remember where I heard that but it was somebody whose father was in World War II and they said they would prefer to be captured by the Germans over the Russians. I know my mother‘s cousins were sent to Siberia by Stalin to die because they were Germans remaining in Ukraine, at the time, Bessarabia, (whose ancestors came at the behest of the Czar at that time in the late 1700’s). Not minimizing what Hitler did at all.

[KT2000]

4. What a spirit!

Your father was one strong man. Respect.
What always amazed me, growing up in a Jewish community, was the belief in goodness the survivors had. They were living heroes teaching the gift of fortitude without saying a thing. The grandmas adored all the children is what I remember most. People just do not understand now.

[truddy777]

5. Thanks

He really was a fighter to survive all that and build a life here. Thanks for sharing his memory-and the reminder that we’ve got to keep speaking up against hate.

[joanbarnes]

7. My Dad was a GI Liberator......

I believe it scarred him for life.

[Hekate]

8. Thank you for this....

Their children who are now old themselves, remember.

Boomers who were raised right, and are now old themselves — we remember.

We are old, but we will not forget, not as long as we have breath.

[NBachers]

9. As those who grew up in these shadows fade away, the Nazi fist rises anew. We can never stop being vigilant.

[MarcoZandrini]

11. We must.....

…never forget. I have been to Auschwitz’s and Birkenau. It was the most emotional day of my life. I could not finish the tour of the buildings in Auschwitz. I didn’t have the emotional strength to do so.

Never again.

[DingleBerryNW]

12. Thank God your father...

was able to breathe freedom again. Evil people are attempting to rewrite history. Humanity must never forget the evil, inhumane atrocities of the holocaust and those who participated and defended the horror. Those who are living and deny holocaust’s existence must be silenced.

Like you, I am grateful that my very progressive parents are not here to experience this disaster named Trump.

[Cha]

14. Mahalo for sharing your

Dad's history of Horror, Survival and Triumph, Danmel.

💕

[MLAA]

15. Wow! Those nuns couldn't have been more wrong!

[Danmel]

17. They probably didn't think he'd understand

He knew Polish, German, Yiddish and Hebrew. He figured it would improve his odds if he could talk to people.
Obviously he also learned English.
I unfortunately did not inherit the polyglot gene.

[MLAA]

20. What an incredible man you had as a father. Did your dad have any hobbies? I'm just in awe of someone who

not only survived, but went on to build a real life, it sounds like he refused to let anyone, including the worst of humanity, cheat him out of that. ❤️

[FakeNoose]

24. My guess is that the German nuns weren't being cruel

They were probably saying that your Dad couldn't survive, because of the severe damage to his health. (I'm glad they were wrong.) It's not like they wanted him to die, after all they were nurses who were trying to help everyone they could.

On the other hand, it's understandable that your father would have assumed the worst about anyone who spoke German, by the time the war ended.

I'm happy that American soldiers were there to help save as many Jewish prisoners as possible. The Russian "liberators" weren't so generous towards their Holocaust survivors.

[enigmania]

16. My great-uncle was tortured by those bastards

when his bomber went down and he was captured.

[Boomerproud]

19. So sorry to hear about your heroic great uncle.

The horrors of war go on and on as if it's normal. Thank you and the OP for honoring these amazing men.

[mucholderthandirt]

18. What an inspiring story! And how wonderful that his survival brought you into the world.

[Meowmee]

22. I'm glad he survived 🤗

My relatives who did not leave were murdered in the beginning except for my great uncle who escaped to Russia after his family and town were slaughtered. Otherwise we would not be here.

[electric_blue68]

23. Wow. I saw photos of some of the camps on liberation days, back in the '60s; so I know what the imprisoned looked....

...like.
Glad he made it.

Living in 2/3rds Jewish neighborhood growing up my Jewish friends had missing portions of their families.