Louis Corper Fogelman, a Holocaust survivor, spoke to the sophomore class about his experience during World War II in Rugby Hall on April 22. Sarah Anschell ’26 and Sophia Wicyzk ’26 who intern at StandWithUs, a nonprofit organization that hosts educational programs to combat antisemitism, hosted Fogelman in anticipation of Holocaust Remembrance Day. Anschell and Wicyzk worked with Coordinator of Jewish Life and Community Engagement Sarah Rapaport and the History Department to plan the event.
Anschell said Fogelman’s presentation was meant to provide sophomores with a first-hand source from the Holocaust, which they are currently studying in their history class, The Rise of the Modern World.
“We felt Fogelman’s story would bring an invaluable personal touch to the material they’re learning,” Anschell said. “It’s one thing to read about the atrocities of the Holocaust for homework or to take a test on the extremes of fascism, but it’s totally different to hear a person right in front of you talking about real things they lived through.”
Born in the Netherlands in 1941, Fogelman was one-year-old when he and his parents were captured by the Gestapo and sent to Hollandsche Schouwburg, a Dutch theater used to detain Jewish people before they were deported to concentration camps. Though Fogelman’s parents were unable to escape, a resistance movement smuggled Fogelman out of the theater and sent him to live with a Catholic family for the remainder of the war. Fogelman said his parents were sent to Auschwitz, where they were killed.
“I was separated from my parents, never to see, feel or smell them ever again,” Fogelman said. “My parents were transported in cattle cars to Auschwitz, where they were murdered. My mother was 24 years young, and my father was 28 years young when they were murdered. And for what? For being Jewish.”
Years after the war, Fogelman uncovered the story of his escape from the Hollandsche Schouwburg Theater. A 17-year-old nursery teacher, Sieny Kattenburg, cared for the Jewish children in the theater and worked for the resistance. She quietly asked Jewish parents whether they wanted the resistance to take their babies from the nursery and transport them to safety. If they agreed, Kattenburg would hand the children over to the resistance. Fogelman said Kattenburg saved over 600 Jewish children, and he still feels connected to her.
“Kattenburg has been a part of my soul since the day we first met,” Fogelman said. “Her beautiful face and kind eyes will live in my heart forever. I always referred to Kattenburg as my earth angel. She passed away about four years ago, and now she’s become my guiding angel.”
After the war, Fogelman lived with his aunt and uncle. They decided to move to the United States, where they adopted Fogelman, and he became a citizen. Fogelman said he was thankful for the community that had helped him during the war.
“I was one of the lucky ones,” Fogelman said. “I only survived because of all the wonderful people in my life.”
Jonah Greenfeld ’27 said Fogelman’s presentation helped him connect to the stories of the Holocaust on a personal level.
“Hearing this firsthand account brought so much emotion and relatability to the stories of the Holocaust,” Greenfeld said. “It’s important for people like Fogelman to speak to students so that we can better understand the experiences of the people during the Holocaust.”
Fogelman said he shares his firsthand experiences from the Holocaust as testimony to its existence.
“We must never forget what happened,” Fogelman said. “I want you to hear the story firsthand so you don’t believe those who deny it or those who say that six million Jews, including a million and a half children, didn’t perish in the way that they did. I’m here to be an ambassador for those who can’t speak for themselves. If we see something wrong, we have to stop it.”
