CARLSBAD, Calif. — One of the few Holocaust survivors left is living right in Carlsbad.
Next week, he is headed back to Poland and will again enter the gates of Auschwitz.
An exclusive mission for survivors is "From Holocaust to Independence."
"People should know it and never forget," Ben Midler said, who was in concentration camps from age 15 to 17. Today he is 94 years young.
Midler’s memory is sharp, and his attitude is positive despite what he’s endured. "I don't live for the past. I live for the future," he said.
He has vivid memories of having to stay quiet and initially trying to escape the Nazis. "Everyone was building hiding places; we were doing the same. We were living two families in a room," Midler said.
He said they started burning houses down to get people out. "We smelled the smoke, my uncle and his son went out to check with me, and the Germans were waiting in the yard," Midler said.
They brought him to his first of six camps. He knew what was happening in the gas chambers but was spared because he was a young man who could work. He remembers, though, being just skin and bones.
"Just a slice of bread and imitation coffee. For lunch, we had soup and another slice of bread at night," Midler said.
He still struggles to understand the motive. Millions of people killed because of their religion? It's hard to process. But Midler rose above and remained devoted to family and the Jewish faith.
"There shouldn't be any difference between religion and color. Grow up with loving people, not hating each other," Midler said.
He was married for 70 years and had three daughters, six grandkids, and three great-grandbabies. He walks more than a mile every morning, tells me he eats what he's supposed to, and still drives a car.
"I'm still on the computer, on Facebook and everything!" Midler said.
He also travels. Midler will visit Auschwitz next week - the site of the largest and deadliest concentration camp between 1941 and 1945. People were starved and tortured. His own family was murdered.
The Holocaust to Independence mission is hosted by FIDF, Friends of the Israel Defense Forces. This marks 75 years of Israel's independence.
"We want to remember Ben, remember the survivors, and make sure this never happens again," Keren-Dee Hamui said, the Operations Manager for the FIDF Western Region.
To this day, Midler speaks to students about his harrowing past.
He's also written 'The Life of a Child Survivor.'
Midler is part of a group of Holocaust survivors. He said in 1960, there were 100 people, and the group is down to 25.
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