F5 Released: Else Schmidt

Else Schmidt from Hamburg, Germany, was a foster child of Emil Matula and his wife. In 1943, when she was eight, Else was deported to Auschwitz with other Roma and Sinti. A young woman called Wanda helped the lonely child survive the concentration camp, while her foster father ceaselessly petitioned the authorities to release his daughter. He finally succeeded in 1944, and Else was taken from Auschwitz to Ravensbrück and released into his custody.