OT: R.I.P. Miep Gies 1909-2010

[lazypadawan]

Anyone who has read Anne Frank: Diary Of A Young Girl knows who Miep Gies was. The last surviving person who helped eight Dutch Jews hide from the Nazis in Amsterdam during WWII, including Frank and her family, was frequently mentioned in the diary. Then a young bride, she and several others risked their own lives as they saw to the safety and daily needs of those hidden away in that small attic. Gies avoided arrest after the hiding place was raided. She found Frank's writings in the attic and presented them to the only surviving member of the Frank family, Anne's father Otto, after to the war. He had the diary published and the rest is history.

As media fans, we talk a lot about heroes but Gies was the real thing, even though she shunned the label herself. She did the right thing at the right time, when it really mattered.

Comments

[may-child.livejournal.com]

Yes...she did the right thing when it really mattered, and when it was considered treasonous. Gies was Dutch by naturalization -- that is, because she married a Dutch citizen -- but German by birth.

Rest in peace.