Eva Nathanson was born in January 1941 in Budapest, Hungary. Her mother is from the Jewish elite. Her grandfather spoke 22 languages and was the interpreter for Franz Joseph [Annotator's Note: Kaiser Franz Joseph I, Austro-Hungarian Empire]. For his service, he was made a baron. The family had an estate near the Hungarian-Czechoslovakian border. Nathanson's father owned a furniture company in Budapest. Her father was murdered by the Nazis before she turned two years old. The family was upper-middle class. They lived in a nice neighborhood. When Nathanson was born, her father had been conscripted into the Hungarian Army. Because he was Jewish, he was used as a laborer, not a soldier. He had two siblings. Nathanson does not remember her paternal grandfather. Her maternal grandfather was killed when she was three. She spent alot of time at his house while her parents worked. Her mother would visit through the Sabbath, then return to Budapest. Nathanson was trained by one year old. She does not remember much about the apartment her mother lived in. There was nice handmade furniture. At her grandfather's estate, she had her own room. When her uncles were conscripted, her cousins and aunts moved to the estate. It was a big, comfortable place. For Sabbath dinner, they ate in a big dining room. Her governess lived in a house next to the main house. The food was glatt kosher. Her grandfather produced the glatt kosher dairy for Czechoslovakia and Hungary. All of his children had to learn how to do the work on the estate. Nathanson was a privileged child because she was the youngest.

Eva Nathanson's first memory of the Holocaust was the Saturday after Sabbath [Annotator's Note: a day of religious oberservance in the Jewish faith]. Her mother let her stay up late so she could do an art project. She was very excited to play art with her cousins. She saw her family crying and whispering. They were cutting out yellow stars [Annotator's Note: a symbol used to identify Jews in the Third Reich] and putting them onto clothing. Nathanson was not told what was happening, but she knew they were all sad. Her grandfather would pick up the local Jewish soldiers and bring them back to the estate for Sabbath. That is how Nathanson's parents met. She remembered seeing a lot of people at the house. Because Hungary was a member of the German-Austrian monarchy, it was not invaded like Poland and Czechoslovakia. The Jewish Question resurfaced during that time. Laws were enacted every day to keep Jews away from other Hungarians. Her grandfather would bring Jewish refugees from Czechoslovakia and Poland to his estate until they found their own place to live. One night, a peasant went out, got drunk, and bragged about his job working for a Jewish man that smuggled Jews out of Czechoslovakia. He inadvertently turned Nathanson's grandfather in. Nathanson was on the second floor with her governess [Annotator's Note: a nanny] when she heard trucks move into the compound courtyard. She heard shouting and gun fire. Her governess told her to stay where she was while she checked things out. She remembers the governess shaking. Nathanson was told to play hide and seek [Annotator's Note: a children's game] and was allowed to take one doll from her room. The governess took her through hallways and passageways she had never been in. They got around the property to the service quarters. She saw her family being pushed onto a truck. She did not understand why her family was going on a trip and she was not. She tried to wave at them, but her governess told her to stop. The governess brought her to her parent's apartment. She was not allowed to play outside unless she was dressed as a peasant. She was told to act deaf and dumb. She cried because her family left without her. She did not understand because of her age. She stayed with the governess's family. She had to share a bed with two generations of people. The next day, they brought her to her mother's house in Budapest.

The underground had contacted Eva Nathanson's mother and told her they would protect them. During the winter of 1943, they hid with whatever she could grab. Nathanson remembers hiding in attics, cellars, and in a storage room. She remembers a mildew smell from the rotting food in the storage room. She remembers the bombing in Hungary. Six months after she went into hiding, her mother was put in charge of another little girl. Nathanson was happy to have a playmate. She hid a hole in a living room floor. Only one person in the house knew they were living in the house. Her mother ran out of money, but could knit clothes. Nathanson never learned to knit because noise of the needles reminds her of being in hiding. In 1944, people were being put in ghettos or deported. They always moved at night, so Nathanson never saw sunlight. She did not get to eat often. Her mother tried to give the kids food whenever she could. The kids had to be carried because they were so weak. One time, they were caught and separated. It was the first time she had ever been away from anyone she knew. Her mother always told her to be invisible, but never told her why. She knew her husband had been murdered for escaping to bring Nathanson a birthday gift. Her mother had lost all of her family, making her more protective. The two girls were the youngest in the group they were put in. Nathanson was terrified, but tried to keep them in a corner. Through the slats in the truck, she could see four uniformed men following the truck on horse. It frightened her. The men started searching through the kids, checked their faces, and then gave them to the men on horses. Nathanson ended up throwing up and soiling herself from the fear. She was around three year's old and felt shame and disgust for letting her mother down. She had not bathed in a long time, making her feel dirty. She wanted to die as she whimpered in the man's arms. The men turned out to be from the underground, and they brought the girls to her mother. She had her first bath in a long time. She felt clean from the disgust she had felt before. They were brought to a cellar that was made up specifically for them. There were rats in the cellar, which scared Nathanson. It was the last place they hid during the war.

Eva Nathanson remembers Budapest [Annotator's Note: Budapest, Hungary] being bombed because the houses would shake. Her mother would try to cover the girls with her body. Nathanson was sick with a fever and malnutrition. She thinks she got sick from her doll. She did not want people to find out she was sick. She remembered being hungry, dirty, and scared all the time. In 1945, the Hungarian Nazis started searching the houses. If they found someone, they brought them to the Danube [Annotator's Note: Danube River] and shot them. They killed Jews, Gypsies, and handicapped people. Her family was caught and marched to the Danube. Her mother carried her there. There were hundreds of people begging not to be shot. Her mother told her to cover her eyes and ears to keep warm. However, Nathanson did not follow the directions. They would tie a few people together then one person would be shot and the others would drown in the water. Nathanson was at the end of the line. Eventually, she felt a rope around her neck and hands. The three of them were tied together. She was terrified. She heard someone tell her mother if she agreed to testify that he did not kill anyone, he would not kill them. Her mother agreed to the bargain. The three of them were dragged away. Nathanson heard a gunshot and then she fell into the river. They were on the edge of the river for some time, but the river was partially frozen. Someone pulled them out, cut the rope, and took them back into hiding. In the apartment, she took her second bath and felt herself defrosting. She was given something warm to drink and new clothes. They stayed in the same room with ten to 15 other people. It smelled bad in the room. People laid anywhere they could find a place. They ate twice a day. Going to the bathroom was a privilege.

Eva Nathanson's fever was getting worse, but all they could do was cool her face with wet cloths. One day, she heard the door open and saw three men in the doorway. She knew they were in Army uniforms, which scared her. The soldiers were from the Soviet Union. One of the men came over and gave her a piece of chocolate. She still remembers the taste of that chocolate. Another soldier opened the window. They were told that the soldiers were Soviets and Budapest [Annotator's Note: Budapest, Hungary] was being liberated. She thought the sunlight was exquisite. By this time, she was four and a half. She was allowed to go outside in the yard. She could hear the bombing and gunfire. One day, they were told that Budapest was liberated and they could go anywhere they pleased. The man they stayed with adopted the little girl. Nathanson and her mother went back to the family estate. She was still afraid of uniformed men, even as they tried to feed her. The estate was taken over by the Soviet Union as a headquarters, so they stayed with her governess's family. She would not let anyone take her doll away to clean it.

One day, Eva Nathanson's mother received a letter and went away for a few days. Her uncle was a phycologist that ran orphanages for children that lost family in the Holocaust. Her mother, uncle, and her father's best friend decided not to tell Nathanson about her father's murder. They did not think Nathanson would survive. Her mother brought the best friend back with her and introduced him as Nathanson's father. He gave Nathanson her first gift, a new doll. They got rid of the old doll. The man held her, and Nathanson felt safe. They returned to Budapest [Annotator's Note: Budapest, Hungary], where they moved into a bombed out building. Her mother and step-father could not marry until her first husband's death certificate came in. Her step-father was a master craftsman. He got a one bedroom apartment for the three of them and his sisters. One of his sister's arrived form Auschwitz [Annotator's Note: Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp complex in Nazi-occupied Poland], but died soon after. They all lived in that building until they left the country in 1956. They were able to add onto the house as they got money. There was no medication for the disease Nathanson was suffering from. She was also having trouble keeping food down. She went to school in Hungary, but was not popular. Her parents were physiologically damaged. The Hungarians were very anti-Semitic. She was a small, weak child and she had a learning disability. Her father did not understand why she was having issues writing things correctly. Nathanson would memorize everything she heard so she could learn correctly. She was a good student. She never experienced firsthand anti-Semitism. She lost many family members during the Holocaust. This led her parents to become nonreligious. They had Friday night dinner and lit candles for the lost family members. They also celebrated holidays.

During the Soviet era, there was not much food, so they did not keep kosher diets. They had to go to the grocery store at six in the morning to get food. Nathanson and her father's apprentices cleaned snow off the streets in front of the house. Her mother had two more children after the war. Nathanson's father was a well-known craftsman. Her grandfather's land was taken by the Communists. Her mother had gone to junior college before the war, so she ran her husband's business. Life under Communist rule was very restrictive. The family was constantly punished. Officials would search the house looking for extra money or gold saved by the family. Nathanson had to be careful what she said and who she talked to because they could be deported. Nathanson was treated differently at school because her father owned a business. She did not want to stand out. When she turned ten, she reached puberty. She was not accepted by the kids in her age range or by older kids. During high school, she tutored kids and gave food to kids with nothing to eat. Nathanson remembered being in school when someone in her class said Hitler's [Annotator's Note: German dictator Adolf Hitler] only mistake was not killing all the Jews. It made Nathanson so made she beat the kid. The principle wanted to expel her, but Nathanson talked her way out of it. She never received a good grade after the incident.

In 1956, the Hungarian Revolution [Annotator’s Note: 23 October to 10 November 1956] started. Eva Nathanson was told to get the girl they traveled with from her home. The man that adopted her became the head of the secret police. Nathanson's parents knew he was going to be killed, so they offered him a place to stay. He stayed there throughout the revolution. At the end of the revolution, the family moved to the United States, and stayed with his father's brother. The family escaped to Austria, where they stayed nine months in a displaced persons camp. In 1957, the family arrived in Los Angeles [Annotator's Note: Los Angeles, California], where she finished school. She started working at age 17. Her father worked in a shop and her mother took care of the elderly. Nathanson earned two bachelor's degrees and two master's degrees and also earned a number of certificates. She worked as the head of a hospital department and then ran a cancer research center. After retiring, she started volunteering and public speaking. Her parents were over protective, but she had been taught how to run the business. Her father did not join the Communist Party, so there was a threat of deportation. At age 12, she found out her father was actually her step-father. It devastated her. That is when Nathanson found out the truth about her father being murdered. Her step-father grew up in a large, poor, Orthodox-Jewish home. When she started going through puberty, her step-father was not able to treat her the same way out of fear. It took years for Nathanson to understand what happened. When she was 12, Nathanson was betrothed to a young Jewish boy in Budapest [Annotator's Note: Budapest, Hungary]. During her youth, she felt ugly because her parents were afraid she would start showing off if she wore nice clothes. They did not feel safe under Communism. When they arrived in Austria, Nathanson was very happy. She felt like she had a chance in life. In the displaced person camp, she taught children and worked in the cafeteria. It was the first time in her life she was surrounded by Jewish people. While in the camp, she became engaged. However, the man went to New York and she did not want to leave her family, so the engagement was broken off.

Before Eva Nathanson arrived in the United States, she tried to read everything about the country. She also needed to learn English. When she arrived, Nathanson knew she was where she wanted to be. She was excited to be an American. She decided never to speak her old languages again. She forgot how to speak German and Russian. She hated Germans, but regrets having those feelings. She was damaged from the Holocaust. She felt the same way about the Russians. She married a young man when she was 19. She had two children during that marriage. That marriage lasted ten years. She worked in a knitting store, despite her aversion to the needles. She was promoted to office work in the business. She ended doing much of the boss' work.

Nobody talked about the Holocaust with Eva Nathanson. When she first got married, there was a young couple that lived nearby. She talked to the woman about everything except where they came from. Thirteen years after leaving her husband, Nathanson ran into the woman, and they discussed being survivors of the Holocaust. She did not want to be a part of the Holocaust survivor's group the woman founded. Eventually she joined, but did not attend the meetings. She did not learn about her family's history during the Holocaust until her mother was dying. Nathanson took care of her during that time. She took that time to ask her mother questions about the Holocaust. For several years after the Holocaust, Nathanson suffered from nightmares. She dreamed about various aspects of what happened to her. The nightmares ended when she was eight or nine years old. In 1994, she was in a bad car accident and when she was in the hospital, she heard them say she would be crippled for the rest of the life. She was in a full body cast for over a year. During that time, she started having nightmares again. In 2009, she was attacked and robbed, which made the nightmares come back. She regressed again when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her daughter found her curled up in a corner of a room like when she was a kid hiding from the Nazis. She tries not to think about the Holocaust as much as possible.

Eva Nathanson knew the first director of the Holocaust Museum [Annotator's Note: Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust] and she would give talks there. Those talks would active her Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Her rabbi also asked her to speak to the kids at their school. She was able to talk about her experiences because she had been married to a phycologist. After an episode, she would talk to a therapist. She did not want to pass on her trauma to future generations in her family. She does not want to be identified as a Holocaust survivor because that is only one part of her story. Nathanson does not suffer from survivor's guilt, but does want to give back to society. She tries not to waste time and she does not lock doors or windows when she is home. She does not like going into enclosed areas. She takes multiple showers a day and she changes clothes several times a day. Nathanson loves chocolate because it always cures her. She always faces the door when she is in a building. She likes to be near a door so she can escape quickly. Certain smells remind her of the different places she hid in during the Holocaust. Nathanson believes that if you need help, get it. She cannot stand child abuse or seeing violence. Her friends laugh at the amount of clothes she packs for trips. She is honest with her children because of the secrets that were kept from her as a child. Fairness is very important to her. Nathanson's sisters have different issues because they did not go through the Holocaust. She is worried about the current president [Annotator's Note: Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States] and his policies towards immigrants. When she talks in museums, she talks about Nazis and communism and the evils of both. She feels personally threatened in the current time. She talks about her experience to try and hopefully change minds.