• Age: 14 to 18
• Grade: 9 to 12

In the fall of 1941, as the situation for Jews worsens across Europe, Ibolya (Ibi) Grossman learns she is pregnant. She is scared and confused – a baby during wartime? But her husband, Zolti, assures her, “We need this baby, you will see.” When András (Andy) is born, Ibi realizes her husband was right. Andy gives her a reason to go on during the worst of times in the Budapest ghetto, and to persevere in their escape from Hungary after the war. In as much as Ibi’s story is a tribute to her son, Andy’s memoir, written through his own and his mother’s memories, as well as her words and silences, is a tribute to her legacy.

Andy Réti was born in Budapest, Hungary, in 1942. He was liberated from the Budapest ghetto in January 1945. Andy has been a volunteer at Toronto’s Holocaust Education Centre since 1998, and joined his mother on many of her events as a survivor speaker. Since his mother’s passing, Andy has continued in her footsteps, telling their stories to numerous audiences.

Andy Réti's profile page

Ibolya Grossman was born in Pécs, Hungary, in 1916. After the war, she was arrested and jailed by the communist regime in Hungary for trying to escape the country. On her second attempt she succeeded with her son, Andy, immigrating to Canada in 1957. Ibolya first wrote and published her memoirs in 1990; she passed away in Toronto in 2005.

Ibolya Grossman's profile page