Magda Hollander-Lafon

Magda Hollander-Lafon
Born
Magdolna Hollander

(1928-06-15)15 June 1928
Záhony, Hungary
Died26 November 2023(2023-11-26) (aged 95)
Rennes, France
NationalityHungarian (until 1954)
French (1954–2023)
Occupation(s)Writer
Psychologist

Madga Hollander-Lafon (15 June 1928 – 26 November 2023) was a Hungarian-born French writer, psychologist, and educator.[1]

Of Jewish origin, Hollander-Lafon was deported to Auschwitz but survived the Holocaust. She moved to France in 1954 and wrote the books Quatre petits bouts de pain and Demain au creux de nos mains.

Biography

Born in Záhony on 15 June 1928,[2] Hollander-Lafon's mother, Esther, and her younger sister, Irène, were killed during the Holocaust.[3] However, Hollander-Lafon lied about her age, claiming to be eighteen, so that she could work in forced labor and survive.[2] During a transfer in April 1945, she escaped alongside four other deportees, who were found by American soldiers.[4] She attributed her survival to a dying woman who shared bread with her and a guard who gave her shoes to help with her work.[3]

After her freedom, Hollander-Lafon became an educator and child psychologist, having trained in France and Belgium. She moved to France in 1954, where she remained for the rest of her life.[5][6] She spent 44 years caring for children in an orphanage,[7] where she converted to Christianity.[2]

Madga Hollander-Lafon died in Rennes on 26 November 2023, at the age of 95.[8]

Works

  • Quatre petits bouts de pain (2012)[2]
  • Demain au creux de nos mains (2021)[9]

Tributes

  • The Établissement Régional d’Enseignement Adapté de Rennes was named after her[10]
  • A square in Vern-sur-Seiche was named after her on 26 March 2022[11][12]

References

  1. ^ "Magda Hollander-Lafon, a call for life against the darkness of Auschwitz". Paudal. 27 November 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Cheyrou, Fanny (25 April 2021). "Un seul regard peut sauver un être". La Croix (in French). Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  3. ^ a b Delaroche, Philippe (5 June 2012). "L'hymne à la vie de Magda Hollander-Lafon". L'Express (in French). Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  4. ^ de Longvilliers, Camille (11 December 2020). "Une vie contagieuse d'amour : Magda Hollander-Lafon". Aleteia (in French).
  5. ^ Maignant, Véronique (3 March 2020). "Magda Hollander-Lafon aux jeunes apprentis de l'Ifac de Brest : " faites confiance à toute cette beauté qui est en vous "". Bretagne Économique (in French). Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  6. ^ "Madga Hollander Lafon". France Inter (in French).
  7. ^ "Des ténèbres à la joie avec Magda Hollander Lafon (rediffusion de l'émission du 25 novembre 2012)". France Culture (in French). 31 August 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  8. ^ Lorin, François (26 November 2023). "Magda Hollander-Lafon, rescapée de la Shoah, est décédée à Rennes ce dimanche 26 novembre 2023". Ouest-France (in French). Rennes. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  9. ^ Simon, Pascal (3 May 2021). "ENTRETIEN. Pour Magda Hollander-Lafon : " demain dépend de chacun de nous "". Ouest-France (in French). Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Actualités". ÉREA Magda Hollander-Lafon (in French).
  11. ^ "Vern-sur-Seiche. Magda Hollander-Lafon, déportée à Auschwitz". Ouest-France (in French). Vern-sur-Seiche. 2 April 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  12. ^ "Vern-sur-Seiche. Déportée, Magda Hollander-Lafon donne son nom à une place". Ouest-France (in French). Vern-sur-Seiche. 2 April 2022. Retrieved 29 November 2023.