Hero Award For Survivor Bobby

by Erica Morris - Thursday 13th November 2008


An Auschwitz survivor who saw her mother and two siblings forced into the gas chambers and who was left for dead herself was this week named the winner of Jewish Care's Minerva Award, honouring a special individual who has made a real difference to the community.

Born in Czechoslovakia in 1929, Eva 'Bobby' Neumann never spoke about her
horrific experiences - even to her own family - until three years ago. But
today, the mother of five, grandmother of 25 and great-grandmother of 12
leads tours around Poland and the camps on behalf of Aish UK's JRoots
programme.

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Presenting the award at Jewish Care's Minerva Business lunch at the
Grosvenor Hotel on Monday, Ivan Ezekiel of Minerva plc praised her ability
"to display courage but not be consumed by hate".

Bobby told the 600 guests: "For 60 years, I said almost nothing to anybody
about my experiences. Only my closest family knew and even to them I found
it difficult to open up. In the light of all the denial and forgetfulness
that now surrounds the Holocaust period, I am grateful for the opportunity
to tell the simple truth."

She added: "There are books, archive films and photographs but nothing can
replace going personally with a group of young people and saying: 'here I
stood'. That living testimony is more effective than all the archives in the
world.

"The question I am most frequently asked is - 'do you hate the Germans?' but
I have long since come to realise that hate is a wasteful and destructive
feeling. Thank God I have been blessed since the war. If I hated the
Germans, my hatred would do them no harm but would consume me. Instead, I
have naches and great happiness."

The lunch itself, now in its tenth year, raised more that £250,000 for the
charity's Sobell Day centre in Hendon. Guest speaker Ron Sandler, Chairman
of Northern Rock, who addressed the audience on the current financial crisis
and how it might affect charities, said: "Hearing about Eva's remarkable
life suddenly makes all the talk about recession feel vaguely irrelevant.
"Economic cycles come and go but the really important things in life are
relationships, community and the triumph of the human spirit over adversity.
Talking of what really matters - this is also an appropriate time to
acknowledge the outstanding work of Jewish Care."

Reflecting on the success of the event, Jewish Care Chairman Stephen
Zimmerman, said: "This lunch is an example of the business community's
ability to continue to offer incredible support for Jewish Care in such
difficult times.

"Our work on behalf of the frailer members of our community has to be funded
and it is vital therefore that we keep it at the forefront of the
community's attention."

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