Students at Halsey Middle School question Hanka Ablin, a
Holocaust survivor who recently visited the Brooklyn school

The seventh and eighth graders at Halsey Middle School’s Lola Rodriguez De Tío Leadership Academy have been studying the Holocaust for the past month—but books couldn’t prepare them for the real life lesson they received last week when a Holocaust survivor visited their Brooklyn school.

Hanka Ablin, originally from Krakow, Poland, survived both the Krakow Ghetto and a Nazi work camp during World War II. She visited Halsey to share her experiences with students.

“I want to share my story with as many people as possible,” Ablin told the students, crying through many of the memories she related to them.

Ablin, just four years old when Germany invaded Poland, was separated from her father and brother during the war. She lived with her mother at the work camp. The family was reunited afterwards, the only complete family from Krakow to survive the Holocaust.

“It was very brave of her to share her story although the memories hurt so deeply,” a student, Dianna Garcia, said.

Another student, Edward Morris, said, “I am very thankful that she is alive today to tell us her story.”

“It is a blessing to get such knowledge and wisdom about the past to help shape our future,” a third student, Edmannual Rosario, said.

Ablin now lives in Manhattan.

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