A Danish Boy In Theresienstadt, Reflections of a Holocaust Survivor

 By Steen Axel Metz

On October 2, 1943, my parents and I were arrested and deported to the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp from my childhood home in Odense, Denmark. I was only eight years old. This Nazi facility was the scene of constant hunger, brutal living conditions, and death.  Some 15,000 children passed through Theresienstadt. I am one of fewer than 1,500 who survived.
My father died of starvation after less than six months in the camp.
My mother and I spent a total of eighteen months in Theresienstadt.  We were liberated on April 15, 1945 by the Red Cross "White Buses" -  just one month prior to the scheduled launch of the camp's newly installed gas chamber.
My mother and I returned to Odense, Denmark, where I completed high school and business college in Copenhagen.
Like many Holocaust Survivors, I kept my war experiences private for many years. In 2011 I was ready to share my story when I completed my memoirs, including a self-published book "A Danish Boy in Theresienstadt."