World's oldest Holocaust survivor, Rose Girone, passed away at age 113

Polish-born Rose managed to get visas for her and her husband to escape Germany to Shanghai in 1939, later settling in Queens, New York.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF FEBRUARY 25, 2025 18:26

Rose Girone (photo credit: SCREENSHOT/X/VIA SECTION 27A OF THE COPYRIGHT ACT)

Rose Girone, the world's oldest Holocaust survivor, passed away at 113 years old on Monday in New York.

Girone was born in Poland in 1912, and moved to Hamburg, Germany with her family.

In 1939, her husband was arrested and sent to Buchenwald concentration camp.

Girone, eight months pregnant at the time, was able to secure visas for her and her husband to escape to Shanghai, China.

There, she began knitting for a living, a hobby that ended up with her opening a knitting shop in Queens, New York, where she was reportedly a beloved part of the knitting community.

Girone as a Holocaust survivor

According to Israel's Government Press Office (GPO), Girone was "always particularly outspoken about her experiences before and during the war."