Alone

Eva Bostock was born on January 22, 1919 in Vienna, Austria. When she began to walk, it was discovered that she had a dislocated hip. Her younger brother Dolphi had inherited the same genetic disorder. Eva's mother came from a small shtetl, Pottok Zloty, in Galicia, Poland. Her father was from Krakow. Their families had fled from the pogroms. Her maternal grandfather was Chassidic and studied the Talmud. Eva's family practiced traditional Judaism and kept a kosher home. Young Eva wanted to become a doctor. She qualified for a scholarship to a high school that taught Greek and Latin, and prepared students to study medicine. She also learned to play violin and performed in the school orchestra. When she turned 18, the Nazis banned Jews from attending university. She decided to become a nurse instead. She was accepted at the biggest hospital in Vienna, where she worked as a nurse apprentice. Her parents wrote to distant relatives in America seeking help. In response, they sent an affidavit enabling immigration to the U.S., but there was a long waiting list. They were trapped in Europe because the war broke out. In the meantime, Eva's cousin, Bernhard, sought employment for her and his sister, Risa, in England. Luckily, jobs were secured. In order to leave the country, the prerequisite entry permits from England and exit visas from Austria were both necessary. They were acquired. Eva remembers saying goodbye to her parents, as her father consoled her, "Don't cry, things will get better." At the age of nineteen, Eva arrived in London and was sent to a small town outside Birmingham to begin her job as a nursemaid. After a few months, she found a different job as a nurse. Through the Red Cross, Eva sporadically received short notes from her family in Vienna and was able to respond. But, as the Nazis grew in power, the communication ceased. In 1939, Eva was invited to a church social where she met her future husband, Bill. The Nazis invaded Poland the same year and war broke out. They both spoke German and were declared "Enemy Aliens." Eventually, Eva and Bill were deemed refugees and released. She got a job and Bill worked in his chosen field as an auto mechanic. They were married on October 30, 1942. Bill wanted to fight the Nazis but was told that Klopstock sounded too German, so their last name was changed to Bostock. When the war ended, Eva found out what fate had befallen her family. Eva's mother died at Theresienstadt and her father in Auschwitz. In 1949, Eva and Bill immigrated to Australia by ship, which took six weeks. They found lodging with Bill's relatives who owned a bakery. They began searching for land to build a home and eventually found a block in Bankstown. Their greatest treasure was a son named John. He's now married with three children of his own and living in Israel. Eva passed on in 2016. However, prior to her death, Eva knew that her story would not be forgotten thanks to two young girls from Florida.
About the Author: Rivka Levitin is 12 years old and lives on Palm Beach Island, Florida, where her parents, Rabbi Zalman and Rebbetzin Hindel Levitin, are Chabad emissaries. Rivka is the oldest of six children, five girls and one boy. She attends the Hebrew Academy Community School of Margate. Rivka enjoys reading, writing, cooking, hanging out with friends, singing, organizing and learning. Rivka created her own magazine, called "The Five Star Newsletter," and continues to publish it. For Rivka, working on this book was an eye-opening and impactful experience. For the first time, instead of reading a Holocaust survivor story about an unknown person, she met the Holocaust survivor and was privileged to author in this book.