Malka Rendel was born in 1927 in the town of Nagyecsed in Hungary the youngest in an Orthodox family of eight was killed in an accident before her birth and her mother Sara ran the family's fabric store after his death Her two older siblings immigrated to Eretz Israel before WWII forbade the Jews to trade and ordered them to wear the Yellow Star Malka was assigned the humiliating task of cleaning the street in front of her Hungarian friends the Jews of the city were deported to the Mátészalka ghetto The entire extended family lived in one apartment Malka and her family were deported to Auschwitz in a cattle car – a journey of about six days Malka tried to grab hold of her mother and one of her sisters but most of the family was sent to one side and Malka and her sisters Her mother gave her two cookies and told her sisters: "Take care of Malka." Of all the family members Malka and her sisters were sent to the Płaszów concentration camp where they labored in a quarry carrying stones with their bare hands People around them were constantly killed by rock explosions The three were returned to Auschwitz and from there they were sent to Neustadt the women stole oil and threads to light makeshift candles that they didn't take everything from us," says Malka Malka and her sisters were forced on a death march to the Gross-Rosen concentration camp Prisoners who could not continue walking were shot At night they slept in each other's arms to keep warm Malka and her sisters were transferred to Bergen-Belsen They were thrown through the window onto a pile of corpses "That memory still haunts me," Malka cries "Sometimes I can't believe I went through all this Then I roll up my sleeve and look at the number on my arm She took Zionism and Hebrew classes from emissaries who came from Eretz Israel (Mandatory Palestine) Malka boarded a refugee ship to Eretz Israel but was caught and imprisoned in the British detention camps in Cyprus where she continued to study Hebrew until her eventual immigration 36 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson The Yad Vashem website had recently undergone a major upgrade The page you are looking for has apparently been moved We are therefore redirecting you to what we hope will be a useful landing page For any questions/clarifications/problems, please contact: webmaster@yadvashem.org.il A powerful ice storm wreaked havoc in Nagyecsed as parts of Europe struggled with record-high temperatures and wildfires Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player The aim of the touring exhibition is to present the outstanding members of the Hungarian Gypsies community who through their professional and public activities contributed to building a self-conscious and proud Hungarian Gypsy community to the cultural development of Hungary and to making Hungary a more colourful country some may have even sacrificed their lives for the freedom of their country More than thirty years after the regime change this touring exhibition pays tribute to the heroes of the Hungarian Gypsy community The travelling exhibition was first presented in Pécs on 4th February 2022 and has since been displayed in 27 venues across the country (Pécs Tihany) and has been seen by tens of thousands of visitors free of charge The House of Terror Museum and the Foundation for Research on Central and Eastern European History and Society are committed to commemorating Roma heroes and raising public awareness of their efforts and to show that Hungarian Gypsies have served both their communities and Hungary through their activities and by embracing Gypsy causes and supporting their communities the Foundation has made it a priority to trace Roma heroes to document their stories and to honour their historical achievements through exhibitions commemorative stamps and various publications Legal Disclaimer Privacy Policy Press Contact Copyright © Foundation for Research on Central and Eastern European History and Society – All rights reserved.