- [Narrator] Funding for this edition of One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been provided by The Russell Berrie Foundation.

Making a difference.

Holy Name.

Kean University.

Where Cougars climb higher.

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

NJM Insurance Group.

Serving New Jersey’s drivers, homeowners and business owners for more than 100 years.

The Fidelco Group.

Valley Bank.

The New Jersey Education Association.

And by The Adler Aphasia Center.

Promotional support provided by New Jersey Monthly.

The magazine of the Garden State, available at newsstands.

And by The New Jersey Business & Industry Association.

- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The way we change Presidents in this country is by voting.

- A quartet is already a jawn, it’s just The New Jawn.

- January 6th was not some sort of violent, crazy outlier.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I mean what other country sends comedians over to embedded military to make them feel better.

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

_ It’s not all about memorizing and getting information, it’s what you do with that information.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) - Hi everyone.

Steve Adubato.

We're about to meet someone who has a powerful, important and impactful story to tell, the story of her life, as much as she can tell in a public television program.

She's Hanna Wechsler.

Hanna is the author of this book, In Spite of it All, and Hanna, first of all, thank you very much for joining us, Hanna.

- I hope I do it well.

- Well, I know you're gonna do it well, Hanna, can I tell a little bit about you and then- - You are free.

I am in my house.

You are in your home.

- Absolutely.

Hanna was born in Poland in 1936.

In 1939, when she was just three years old.

She and her family hid for six weeks in the cellar of a barn with the help of a Polish family.

When the Nazis invaded Poland, eventually neighbors became suspicious.

Leading to Hanna's family being captured by the Nazis.

Hanna and her family were taken to the Krakow ghetto.

She was given a number along with countless others, millions of others.

Number 88987, a number tattooed on her and they were sent to Auschwitz, a concentration camp.

Hanna, first of all, thank you again, Hanna, first of all, why the book?

Because in the book you talk about why you're writing the book, why write the book and then come on and share with our audience on public television your experience?

Why is that so important?

- It is a very important message, In Spite of it All, is that whatever comes across, you have to do your best and fight it.

Otherwise it's no good for anybody.

- So Hanna, it's interesting in the book you say that there are people, there are so many different people.

Well put it this way, you said not everyone has the same story to tell, even if they were survivors of the Holocaust.

And you say some people very quickly, early on started talking about their experiences, others like yourself held back.

You chose Hanna not to share with your children early on your experiences at the hands of the Nazis in the Holocaust, in Auschwitz.

Why did you choose not to talk about those horrific experiences for so long?

Please.

- Because it was another punishment that I was exposed to those horrible things that were done to children and grown up.

I wanted them first to grow up and understand the world and see that are good people and bad people.

I waited for a certain point at that time that I held back on it.

A lot of people didn't share it because the currents was so strong that some people shut up completely and become silent.

I grew up in an environment that my mother and father talked about it all the time.

And by them talking all the time was to me a punishment because I had to hear it and hear it and hear it again.

And this why I didn't do it much I think.

- So in reading the book, part of me wants to say it's unimaginable, but that's absurd because it's so real.

For people who have seen Steven Spielberg's work, for people who have seen video, film pictures, again, it's not real for those of us who read about it, but we know it happened.

But in your case, happening to you at such a young age, can I just read a little bit and then you respond.

- Sure.

- You were one of the youngest victims.

You were left alone all day with little to do other than watch the rats.

There was no food.

We slept on wood.

No blankets.

We were abused.

I know, it's a crazy question, Hanna, how knowing as young as you were that people were being killed, incinerated.

I'm realizing now during the day when we're taping, I get irritated by some things that go wrong and I realize how how absurd that is.

And I ask myself, "How could Hanna Wechsler have survived?"

Do you know the answer to that question?

- Yes.

I have a wonder word that is called no choice.

And I was born to a mother that was a real, my son-in-law used to call her a real koza.

A koza is a woman in the Russian language that is really, she looks at you, you shiver because you're a afraid she will push you aside.

My mother brainwash me from day one.

She always told me, "Hanna, I'm not going to lie to you, you're a little girl.

But you have to understand, you have to be ready to do everything that I tell you.

You not supposed to talk, to move.

You have to become like the wind."

And this sentence was told to me day after day after day.

I was sitting in the barrack.

That's where we lived in Auschwitz.

And watching the rats and the mice, I was afraid they're going to start eating me.

But we were good for one another.

I'm not sure if I answered your question.

- You did, but I wanna ask you this.

- So in the book you talk about how...

When the Nazis, the soldiers, when they were deciding who would go in one line or another, and one of those lines was to be killed.

- Yeah.

- Do you have any idea how those decisions were made and how you wound up not in that line?

If that makes any sense.

- It makes sense.

I was exposed to a selection like that.

A selection is the, Mangale.

- Dr. Mangale.

- Dr. Mangale made an appointment with us.

We all had to stand outside in the rain, undress, naked and wait till his highness arrived.

When his highness arrived, he used his hand, to the right is to the living, to the left is to die.

What did he do?

What did my mother do in order he should not see me?

She asks the people from barrack, "Please make a round turn."

And it's like a bottle that you go from right to left.

And in that little bottle between the legs of most of the women was that little carna.

And when she was there, he came after a few hours and went right and left, right and left.

When he came to my mother put his hand on her to check her skin, he looked at her and he said, "Your turn will come next."

That means she was too good yet to be dead.

It's hard to believe that a human being that was exposed to such horrendous unhuman ways survive when to teach as a family is like 12 people.

It's more important.

- Hanna, when you were as a young girl in the concentration camp, there were other young children there as well, correct?

- Yes, but I came late from Hungary, and I was the only child in the barrack because my mother succeeded really to have instead of a daughter, a wind that nobody can see her and nobody can hear.

How she did this, I don't know.

- You did not have any relationships with other children.

You didn't connect?

- None.

- How long were you in the concentration camp?

- I am very- - So I'm sorry for interrupting Hanna.

I don't know why we call them concentration camps.

They were death camps.

- Okay.

- They were death camps.

But how long were you in the death, so-called concentration camp?

- It's approximately half a year.

And I was already towards being freed by the Russian.

So that was like the last stages of the German army still be in full power.

- Hanna, I mentioned when I introduced you and I saw an interview that you did where you, go on YouTube if you wanna watch Hanna and listen to Hanna in other interviews.

But I saw an interview when you talked about the number 88987, the significance of that number being tattooed on you.

And you talked about no longer being a human being with a name but a number.

Please talk about that.

- We were given numbers because we (indistinct) dehumanized because cattle have numbers and people have names.

And this number, when I came from Hungary with my mother, so Auschwitz, we were exposed to a tattoo machine.

What does that mean?

On when people came in, there were two rows.

One was a row of women that did the tattooing and one was a row of the women and people that received the tattooing.

When I got the tattooing the next day I got 102 fever.

My mother had to tear a piece of her dress in order to be able to put it in water in order to try to help me.

And my mistake, I didn't become really sick.

- When you hear people, people sometimes call people a holocaust denier.

- Yeah, - They deny it.

- Yeah.

- And then there are others who don't deny it but minimize it and say, "Let's just move on."

Talk to those people right now who may be watching and listening.

Talk to them, Hanna.

They say it's it's way in the past.

- It's this occurrence in human history.

There are people that don't have the heart in their heart to believe that people can do one to another.

There are people that like to do those things until today, there are countries that terrible things are happening today.

It's such an occurrence in life that the human brain, I live with it.

I talk about it.

Not that I enjoy it, but I do it because it's forbidden to not to remember it and not try to teach other people to do better in life.

But deniers are usually, I don't want to call anybody, say are a little bit not too intelligent, not caring.

And this is what I could tell.

- You know, people have resentment, people have hate.

So let me ask you this, for so much less than what you have experienced and so many millions of others experienced.

Hanna, do you have any hate toward- - No.

- Those who did this to you?

- No, I don't.

- Why not?

- I forgave them.

Why not?

What would one hatred do with another hate?

You couldn't operate, there is not a solution.

At least you show to those people.

Do you know what happened?

Why do you don't attack them.

You speak to them and ask them questions and you show them how ignorant they are.

And sometimes ignorance brings either a blessing or a curse.

And I taught many children.

I spoke to many grownups.

You have to have an approach to people to try to explain who say, so let me hear, what do you know about it?

What do you want to do about it?

And that's say 30% you can win.

- Hanna, tell us about your life now.

Tell us about your family.

- I have a wonderful family and I don't say it because every mother says it.

I have two daughters that are incredibly hardworking, very, very devoted.

Do good things, aggravate me.

(Steve laughs) - You have grandchildren?

- I have three great children, grandchildren.

One just got engaged one last Friday.

One lives in Israel and one lives in California.

And I am very, very, very proud of them.

They're hardworking, honest, good people.

And as any grandmother or mother is, she thinks that she has the best.

The best in my family was unfortunately my husband, he was the best of all of us.

- How long were you married?

- 50 years.

- 50?

- And then he said enough, - What was your husband's name?

- Harry.

- Harry.

Where did you meet Harry?

- In the coffee shop.

- Where?

- In Tel Aviv.

- How do you wind up you and Harry in Tel Aviv coming to New Jersey or was there something in between?

How did you get to New Jersey?

- By plane.

- Stop it.

(chuckles) Hanna?

- Yes.

- Okay.

Why did you come to New Jersey?

- Because originally my husband came to Israel from New Jersey and we met and when we met he told me that I should know if things become serious, I have to move with him to America because he went here to school and work here.

As a woman I said to myself, I can convince him, but couldn't convince him and wanted to stay home.

And my father said, "You go what your husband is and you are married, you have two children, go."

So I was, sometimes I'm obedient so I went.

- Sometimes.

- Yeah.

- Hanna we have a couple minutes left and first I want to remind everyone that we're speaking to the author of this very important book.

It's called, In Spite of It All, Hanna Wechsler.

And the picture on the cover here.

Hanna, is this you and your mom?

- Yeah.

- Do you know how old you are in this picture?

- Nine years.

- Nine years old.

- And on the back you have my husband.

- This is Harry.

- Yeah.

- This is not another woman.

This is you.

- I am, officially it's me.

- Hanna, last question for me.

What do you hope people watching right now, and please get the book.

Find the book.

Order the book.

However you have to do it.

What do you hope people who have watched and listened to you for this program come away with?

What do you hope they come away?

What message?

- I hope to the children.

I used to say, you see nothing is impossible.

Where there is a will, there is a way.

To today to people, I would say the same thing.

But the situation of humanity is in such a disarray that if the children don't believe you, what you are talking to them, you have to forgive them and understand it.

It's unbelievable what's happening.

- To say that you are an optimist is an understatement.

It doesn't do justice.

But you are an optimist, aren't you?

- I have no choice but being an optimist.

- No choice.

- No choice.

- You can't be bitter, you can't be angry, you can't be hateful.

- And you cannot be old.

- You cannot.

(chuckles) Now this is the last question.

People can do the math.

Next year, you're going to celebrate a very big birthday, correct?

- Yeah.

- Okay.

- Would you come to my birthday?

- Is it in New Jersey?

- I didn't plan it.

I can tell my kids.

- Wait a minute.

Hold on.

Yeah, we just had my mom, we just had our mom's 90th and we had to plan it.

Wait a minute.

Are you saying you're not having a birthday party?

- I didn't say that.

I said I don't know if they are planning anything.

- Okay.

If you find out Hanna- - Yes.

- Because if it's a surprise, we don't wanna ruin it.

But if you're having one- - You come with your mother.

I would be honored.

- With pleasure.

It would be my pleasure and I would be very proud, first of all to talk to you the way you ask questions that could be painful.

You covered it with chocolate and it was completely different.

I dunno how to say.

That's it.

- Thank you Hanna.

- The pleasure was all mine.

And thank you so much and give me the number if there is a birthday, you and your whatever it is.

And mother would be my pleasure to do, this I can trick my children to make a birthday.

- Hanna I wish you and your family all the best.

- The same to you, sir.

And thank you so much.

- That is Hanna Wechsler.

This is the book.

In spite of It All, In spite of It All, Hanna Wechsler.

People ask me all the time, what was the most memorable interview you've done after 30 plus years?

I know for sure what the answer is now.

Thank you Hanna.

- Thank you.

Thank you.

- See you next time.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato is a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Funding has been provided by The Russell Berrie Foundation.

Holy Name.

Kean University.

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

NJM Insurance Group.

The Fidelco Group.

Valley Bank.

The New Jersey Education Association.

And by The Adler Aphasia Center.

Promotional support provided by New Jersey Monthly.

And by The New Jersey Business & Industry Association.

- (Narration) Healing is never just about medicine and technology.

It has to go further than that.

It has to combine science with humanity.

It has to be our best medicine, combined with large doses of empathy, kindness, dignity and respect.

It has to be delivered by people who love what they do and who they do it for.

Holy Name.

Great medicine, soul purpose.