Schindler's List Survivor to Speak at Grinnell College

Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2017, 4:15 p.m.

Published:

September 11, 2017

Celina Karp Biniaz ’52 will share her story of survival from living a comfortable, middle-class childhood to being forced into a Jewish ghetto and later one of the most infamous Nazi death camps, Auschwitz.

One of the last living survivors from Schindler's List, Karp Biniaz will be in Grinnell on Tuesday, Sept. 12 to give a presentation titled “Second Chance” at 4:15 p.m. in the Harris Center Cinema.

This event is free and open to the public.

At 13 years old, 5 years after living in a ghetto and forced labor camp in Poland, Celina and her parents Irvin and Phyllis Karp's names were added to Oskar Schindler's list of Jewish laborers needed for his new factory. On the way to the factory, the train was diverted and Celina found herself imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp. Somehow, she was able to convince Dr. Josef Mengele, the “Angel of Death,” to let her live.

It took Schindler nearly 6 weeks to convince the Germans to release the 300 women back into his custody. Celina's family was reunited and worked in Schindler's factory until they were liberated in May 1945.

Oskar Schindler was an unlikely hero to more than 1,200 Jews whose lives were saved through his efforts. A Czech-German industrialist who started his business ventures as a black marketer, he became wealthy through his association with the Nazi Party and his connections to its leaders. With the invasion of Poland, Schindler later acquired a factory producing enamelware and munitions for the German military front, one that was operated by Jewish labor. This story was later the basis for a best-selling novel, Schindler's Ark by Thomas Keneally (1982), and the Academy Award-winning film Schindler's List (1993) directed by Steven Spielberg.

Two years after the liberation, Celina and her parents immigrated to Des Moines where Celina graduated from North High School. She attended Grinnell College, majoring in philosophy, and then Columbia University in New York, where she earned a master's degree in education.

Sponsored by Grinnell College's Community Enhancement and Engagement and the Center for Religion, Spirituality, and Social Justice.

Grinnell College welcomes the participation of people with disabilities. Accommodation requests may be made to Conference Operations.

The College welcomes the presence of minors at all age-appropriate public events and for informal visits, with the understanding that a parent, legal guardian, or other responsible adult assumes full responsibility for their child’s safety and behavior during such visits or events. In these cases the College expects that an adult responsible for the visiting child takes measures to ensure the child’s safety and sees that the child complies with directions of College personnel. Grinnell College is not responsible for supervision of minors on campus.

This venue is equipped with an induction hearing loop system, which enables individuals with hearing aids set to T-Coil to hear the program.