Haven or Hell? Jews in the Philippines During WWII (Zoom)
For years, Sandy Lanman knew her grandmother Elsie had escaped Germany to the Philippines only to lose her husband Gunther in the brutal Battle of Manila at the end of World War II. Aside from a few photos and family stories, she knew little else. In 2019, a serendipitous encounter on Facebook led her to Gunther’s great-nephew and a trove of photos of Elsie and Gunther in Manila. The discovery sparked her interest in the history of this little-known Jewish haven.