The Only Brazilian That Survived Auschwitz, Discovered Happiness

Andor Stern, “That smoke is your family.”

When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive — to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love. ~Marcus Aurelius

Andor Stern was born in São Paulo, June 17, 1928. He is a Brazilian Holocaust survivor in Nazi Germany, who became known for this fact and for dealing with it in a calm and unapologetic way from the past. He is the only Brazilian-born Holocaust survivor. Wikipedia.

“I share with you the story of Mr. Andor Stern and his observations on happiness. He is the only Brazilian survivor of Auschwitz.” Petronio.

Andor Stern recounts the tragic moments he faced mainly in the last year of World War II when he was deported with his family to the countryside.

He saw his mother and other relatives took to the gas chamber of the infamous camp and was only spared for use in slave labor to which prisoners were subjected.

He also shares his worldview full of wisdom and gratitude for the simple things in life.

Andor Stern was born in São Paulo on June 17, 1928, the son of a Hungarian doctor from the mining company Anglo Gold and Julia Schgerin, a woman of German descent.

At the age of 3, his father received a job offer in India, then his entire family moves out of São Paulo.

Stern spent a few years in India with his family.

Her father, who should have returned to Brazil, instead decided to take the entire family to Hungary to visit relatives.

With the war going on and Brazil’s positioning alongside the allies, he was considered an enemy of the state and was handed over to the Hungarian authorities.

Stern was admitted to a camp in the Lower Carpathians region but managed to escape with the help of an Englishman.

He lived clandestinely in his mother’s house, already separated from his father, until the Nazi occupation in Hungary when the Jews suffered the routine implanted throughout Europe: loss of rights, change to the ghettos, and deportation to Auschwitz.

Andor Stern’s New Life.

After the end of the war, Andor Stern went to finish his studies in Engineering in Hungary.

In 1948 after 3 years in Hungary, he decided to return to Brazil where he did not even remember his native language.

After returning to São Paulo, he re-learned Portuguese and went to work at IBM and he starts his own company.

In 1954 he married, had 5 kids, and kept his company until 1993 when it went bankrupt due to an economic crisis in the Collor Government.

Today, at 92, he lives a common life in his hometown, and also sometimes gives lectures and interviews for TV shows and books.

Thanks Petronio!

Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.

Marcus Aurelius.

Thank you for reading. Stay safe and happy.

April 4, 2021