One day in Auschwitz

Summary

Auschwitz was a concentration camp with over 40 other camps built inside and all were operated by Nazi soldiers and used for a factory of death. 1.3 million people were kept captive and about 1.1 million of them died to gassing and natural causes.

Kitty's mother formed a relationship with the priest being able to teach other nationalities english. Her mother began this job because making a relationship with the priest would mean they’d both be able to escape.

Kitty and her mother eventually escaped poland and were arrested for entering the country unauthorised.

On 2 April 1943, when Kitty was 16, she and her mother arrived at Auschwitz. They found jobs working with dead prisoners, which was less physically demanding than jobs outside the camp. They had to sleep in wooden sheds that were meant for 52 horses but 1000 prisoners were squeezed into them.They were having to share 1 blanket and a straw mattress between 10 people.

Prisoners most feared thing was selections because they were picked randomly. When you were selected you were sent to block 25 to await death. Her mother later on worked as a nurse were Kitty helped her mother. Kitty would hide her friends there but told them it was the most dangerous place because SS doctors would come in and pick out selections. She eventually lost her friends to selections.

After 2 years Kitty and her mother had survived. 30 members of Kittys family died to nazi’s including her father and grand father. Kitty’s mother Rosa felix lived the rest of her life in Birmingham, England where she died peacefully in 1974 at the age of 84. Kitty currently lives in England she has two sons and eight grandchildren.

She continues to tell her story.