Elizabeth Goldstein was born in March 1926 in Kisar, Hungary. She was the second oldest of eight children. She and her older brother are the only members of her family to survive the concentration camps. Prior to World War 2, her parents owned a general store, and property with wheat fields and fruit orchards. She remembered her family as a close knit unit, but they struggled, so Goldstein did not really have a childhood. At only seven years old, she remembered when Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany; she knew her family was in trouble. Because Hungary was the last country Hitler invaded, they would hear rumors of trains taking people or hear about mass shootings. Her father was optimistic and told her not to worry because they were good citizens to Hungary.

Elizabeth Goldstein recalled when Germany took over Hungary, she did not see one German soldier. All the military enforcers were Hungarians. Her father tried to get help from some Hungarian friends to no avail. Laws for Jews in Hungary became very strict. They were forced to keep their store open during Sabbath, and they had to wear yellow stars on their clothing. Goldstein's father and brother hid out in the woods during the night because they were afraid that they would be picked up. Even when Goldstein's family was removed from their home and placed in the ghetto [Annotator's Note: in Mateszalka, Hungary], she still hoped that this was all temporary and would not last very long.

Elizabeth Goldstein and her family lived in the ghetto [Annotator’s Note: in Mateszalka, Hungary] for only a couple of months before they were put on cattle wagons and sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp in German occupied Poland. As soon as they arrived, her family was separated. Goldstein's mother and four youngest siblings we directed to the right, her father and two brothers were directed straight ahead, and she and her 13 year old sister [Annotator's Note: Ibolya] were directed to the left. Goldstein and her sister were housed in a warehouse and the next day sent to Kraków-Płaszów Concentration Camp in German occupied Poland. They were put to work right away building a pool for the commandant of the camp [Annotator's Note: German SS-Hauptsturmführer Amon Göth]. Goldstein recalled the cruelty of the commandant. He would throw rocks at the prisoners as they walked past him, he would come in the camp every morning on his white horse and beat prisoners to death if they got in his way. She remarked on other cruelties in the camp. Guards would shoot prisoners if anyone was missing from roll call, barely any food or drink were given, she would walk over dead bodies and people electrocuted themselves at the fence. Goldstein's primary goal was to care for her sister and giver her hope.

Elizabeth Goldstein and her sister [Annotator's Note: Ibolya] were transferred back to the Auschwitz concentration camp in German occupied Poland sometime in September [Annotator's Note: September 1944]. They were tattooed, forced to stand in the street naked everyday waiting to be selected. One day, her sister was separated from Goldstein, but when the guards were not looking, she ran over to her sister. She was not caught. Sometime in October of the same year, she and her sister were sent to Hundsfeld, Germany to work at an ammunition factory. They were housed in a small camp with bunk beds and were given thin blankets. They made bullets for the German war effort. Goldstein would sabotage the bullets, but she got caught and was beaten badly. The guards at the facility were women. Most of the guards were cruel, except one, named Helen, who tried to help the prisoners. Helen didn't want to be there and told them she was forced to work at the factory. Sometime in January [Annotator's Note: January 1945], the factory had been discovered by the Allies. The guards told the prisoners to get out of the building and follow them. Goldstein remembered how cold it was outside. They walked for four or five days until they reached the Gross-Rosen Concentration Camp in Germany. They started out with 1,200 prisoners and only 200 survived the death march. They stayed overnight and then were put on open wagons the next morning and sent to Mauthausen concentration camp then to the Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp.

In April 1945, Elizabeth Goldstein heard noises and saw airplanes circling in the sky. She knew that the end was near. Although by this point, she could not walk, she crawled outside the barracks to see the airplanes. She returned to her sister [Annotator's Note: Ibolya] in the barracks who had taken ill. She told her sister that it would be over soon, but her sister had died in her arms just a few moments later. When the soldiers entered the camp, they fed the prisoners, and Goldstein remembered how sick she felt. She was sent to a hospital to recover, but she had given up. She did not care anymore. She had found out that all of her family had perished and she no longer felt alive. She was sent to Sweden and recovered in a hospital for a year. She then was sent to a convalescent home and remained there for a year. While she was there, she found out that one of her brothers had survived.

During the death march from the ammunition factory to the Gross-Rosen Concentration Camp in Germany, Elizabeth Goldstein knew that she could not quit. She had to be there for her sister [Annotator's Note: Ibolya]. She kept telling her sister to not sit down. When her family was forced to leave their homes and go to the ghetto [Annotator's Note: in Mateszalka, Hungary], they were told they could not bring anything. They lived in an attic. It was congested. Goldstein remarked that her mother was depressed and was a wreck. Goldstein had to take care of the children. She remembered putting layers of clothing on her body. On the day she was deported, a Christian neighbor handed her family some bread.

Elizabeth Goldstein struggled with her faith. She commented that she questions God and his reasoning for the horrible events that happened to her and her family. After the war and her recovery, she lived with a bunch of women survivors. She enjoyed their company and kept Kosher with them. For most of her life, she refrained from talking about her experiences of the Holocaust. When her granddaughters asked her to speak about it, she began talking about the events that happened to her. She spoke at her granddaughter's class and was sick for the following three days. She copes by thinking about her present family. Goldstein expressed that she often thinks about where she would be in Hungary if the Holocaust did not occur.

Elizabeth Goldstein believes that having institutions like The National WWII Museum is a must. The Holocaust is a horrible history, but it needs to be exposed so young people will see it. She believes that you do not have to love everyone, but you should respect people. Goldstein remarks on a book that her granddaughter wrote about Goldstein's Holocaust experiences. The book was then turned into a play at her granddaughter's college, which she attended and was glad she saw it. [Annotator's Note: Goldstein shows the tattoo she got from Auschwitz.]