Hear Rachel Tzeitlin’s multiple near death experiences during the Holocaust and how God saved her.
At last week’s Shalom House in Caesarea, we asked Rachel Tzeitlin, a Holocaust survivor from Hadera, what Passover means to her. She responded by sharing her gripping story of survival.
In her own words she shares:
I was only 4 or 5 years old when my father, mother, and I fled from the Germans during the evacuation. We crossed the Dnipro River while the Germans were closing in behind us. It was raining heavily. I was soaked, freezing, sick, and drifting in and out of consciousness. Everyone thought I had died.
My father ran around, searching for a place to bury me, convinced I had died. His friend said, “The Germans are so close—just wrap her in a cloth and keep going.” So they did.
When we arrived in Parin, it was warmer, and everyone threw their jackets over me. As the boat reached the other side, people began collecting their jackets—and that’s when they discovered I was still alive. It was almost a tragic mistake—they had nearly buried me alive.
This is just one of many moments that show how I survived.
After we crossed the river, the Germans arrived. Local Ukrainians told them we were Jews, and the Germans took us and placed us in a ghetto, where we stayed—with no food, water, or proper clothing. I had only a dress and a coat made from a potato sack.
Near the end of the war, Soviet troops were pushed out of the area we were in, and the Germans decided to gather all the Jews and execute us. They forced our parents to dig a long pit in October, after the first snow had fallen. The pit filled with freezing water, and they forced us into it. I remember standing in ice-cold water up to my chest. I was only 8 years old.
As they prepared to shoot us, by some miracle, someone began firing at the Germans from a small forest behind them. The soldiers fled, assuming we would die in the cold. People began losing consciousness, and some drowned in the freezing water. My mother pulled us out and laid us on the sand. Then Red Army soldiers arrived, dragged us out of the pit, and warmed us with alcohol. That is how I survived—on the very edge of death.
When we returned home, my father was able to recover his special prayer shawl, his Talmud, and other belongings he had buried for safekeeping. Despite everything we had endured, my father never lost his faith. He returned to the synagogue and resumed celebrating the holy days, including Passover.
This is how God wanted it. His power saved us. May His light always shine, and may our soldiers return home safely.
Rachel’s story of survival is nothing short of a miracle! Hearing her eagerly share this with us during our Passover event is a reminder of how much our time spent together means to those who lived through so much.
As we reflect on God’s great miracles in delivering the Jews out of Egypt, we also see His faithfulness in the lives of people like Rachel, who were delivered from the Holocaust. His hand is still on His people today through His presence and the care made possible by our donors!
This Passover, we delivered hundreds of food vouchers and other essentials—like dental care sponorships—through home visits and personal calls across Israel, offering practical relief and meaningful care in the face of rising living costs, limited pensions, and loneliness.
The need is still great. We’re in the final stretch of our Passover distributions, working to reach as many survivors as possible during the holiday.
Your support brings tangible comfort to survivors who need it most.
Help us continue reaching people like Rachel and Yuri—those who carry deep stories and still need your love, care, and connection.
Donate now to bless and uplift Holocaust survivors this Passover.
