Those close to her and those who knew her praise Denise Holstein’s strength of character. “To come back from the concentration camps, it was necessary”confirms his daughter, Catherine Oiknine. For years, she and her sister knew nothing about their mother’s past. “It was a void for us. Then Serge Klarsfeld unlocked everything. Despite everything, I learned a lot of things in the book she wrote, I still discover more in the interviews, and there are stories which she only told me recently. It was probably easier for her to talk to others.continues Catherine Oiknine.
Denise Holstein actually spoke a lot about her experiences with middle and high school students on the Riviera. At his side, notably: Émile Gente. Resistance fighter, deportee and survivor of the death camps. His son, Jacques Gente, also first deputy mayor of Antibes, paid tribute to this “big dame”. “I have deep respect for her, for the suffering she endured during the deportation, and for her willingness to continue to testify. My father and she may not have had the same ideas, but the important thing , this is the commitment they made to their compatriots who did not return from the camps. They made them the promise to honor the duty of memory and they kept it.declares Jacques Gente.
“There was a contrast between his strength of character and the fragility of his figure”smiles Jean Leonetti, the mayor of Antibes. Who adds: “We will miss her, but we will keep the memory of a courageous woman who, to the limit of her strength, upheld the values of the dignity of the human person.”
A street in his name?
Saddened, Jacques Gente prefers to remember the one who “represents the will to resist”. “In the current political context, she remains an example”he continues. “My mother did not realize the current rise in anti-Semitism. Fortunately, because it would have been another trauma for her”pose Catherine Oiknine.
Even if time passes, the experiences of deported people must not be overused. The mayor of Antibes and his first deputy are therefore considering honoring the memory of Denise Holstein by naming a street after her.
> The funeral of Denise Holstein will be celebrated on Wednesday November 20 at 3 p.m., at the Rabiac cemetery.
