Czech-born Eva Aigner’s close-knit Orthodox family was shattered by Nazi forces when she was merely a child. After the deportation of her father to a slave labor camp, 7-year-old Eva Aigner was confined to the Budapest ghetto with her mother and sister, where they endured starvation and narrowly avoided execution. Following the war, Eva met and married Leslie “Les” Aigner (1929-2021), a fellow Holocaust survivor who had endured Nazi-run ghettos and camps as a teenager. In 1956, Eva and Leslie immigrated to Oregon, where they raised a family and led efforts to further Holocaust education.
During her evening talk at OSU, Eva Aigner shares her family’s experiences of deprivation and determination within the Budapest ghetto. Sue Johnson (daughter of Eva and Leslie) joins her mother on stage and recounts Leslie Aigner’s story of survival through four Nazi camps, including Auschwitz and Dachau.
Note: Captions for this video have been auto-generated and may contain errors.
Holocaust Memorial Program | | Oregon State University