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Holocaust survivor pops the question – at 91

A special engagement party for David Marks and Kathy Peck was hosted on Zoom by diaspora chief Ronald Lauder

August 12, 2020 18:35
David Marks and Kathy Peck have delayed their wedding until June 2021
3 min read

When David Marks and Kathy Peck thought they might have to change their wedding arrangements because their rabbi would not be available, they suggested asking World Jewish Congress president Ronald Lauder to perform the ceremony.

That is because David and Kathy are not just any engaged couple. He has just turned 92 and is a Hungarian Holocaust survivor, and with the support and encouragement of Kathy, 70, he made his first return visit to Auschwitz in January this year, since being liberated 75 years ago.

The couple’s visit took place under the auspices of Mr Lauder’s Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Foundation. More than 100 survivors from all over the world attended an emotional dinner in Krakow, Poland, before going to the camp and showing their families where they had been imprisoned. 

That visit to Poland helped establish a community of survivors which has continued to meet online during the coronavirus lockdown. Towards the end of last month, Mr Lauder hosted 60 survivors on Zoom to celebrate both David’s 92nd birthday and the couple’s engagement.