While most Holocaust stories tell of deprivation and loss, the Widermans’ story of survival exemplifies more, showcasing their talent, luck, courage, and resilience. As told by her daughter Brenda, Nicole Widerman Holland’s memories include her eluding Nazi arrest, her subsequent escape from occupied Paris, and her joining the resistance as a courier, then fighting with them as they liberated towns across France near the end of the war. Intertwined with her mother’s courageous stories are the disturbingly sad details of her uncle Robert (Widerman) Clary, who survived 4 different concentration camps and a 2-week death march prior to liberation. Perhaps the most courageous aspect of the Widerman family’s survival is their determination to create successful, happy lives after the war, despite the memories of their losses, a strength and resilience that Brenda encourages her audiences to emulate.
While most Holocaust stories tell of deprivation and loss, the Widermans’ story of survival exemplifies more, showcasing their talent, luck, courage, and resilience. As told by her daughter Brenda, Nicole Widerman Holland’s memories include her eluding Nazi arrest, her subsequent escape from occupied Paris, and her joining the resistance as a courier, then fighting with them as they liberated towns across France near the end of the war. Intertwined with her mother’s courageous stories are the disturbingly sad details of her uncle Robert (Widerman) Clary, who survived 4 different concentration camps and a 2-week death march prior to liberation. Perhaps the most courageous aspect of the Widerman family’s survival is their determination to create successful, happy lives after the war, despite the memories of their losses, a strength and resilience that Brenda encourages her audiences to emulate.
Born in Dallas, Brenda Hancock grew up in Irving, Texas and graduated from East Texas State University (now Texas A&M at Commerce). She graduated with a BA in English and math and an MEd in elementary education and French. A retired teacher, Brenda has taught various levels of English, French, and math in Daingerfield, Texas; with the Department of Defense Dependents Schools in Korea and in Germany; in Waynesville, Missouri; and at Farmington High School and Fayetteville High School in Arkansas. Brenda inherited her love of storytelling from her mother, who shared stories of her work as a resistance fighter during WWII, and from her paternal grandmother, who often shared stories about growing up in turn-of-the-century northeast Texas. She is the author of One of the Lucky Ones, a biography of her mother, a Resistance fighter during World War II; Talent Luck Courage, a memoir combining her mom’s experiences with her uncle’s (Robert Clary of “Hogan’s Heroes” who survived four concentration camps); Little Sparrow, a novel based on her Aunt Helene who most likely died in Auschwitz; Starting Over, a novel based on her year teaching in Taegu, Korea; and Mischievous Matchmakers, a novel about preteens trying to find a new husband for their mother. Brenda currently lives with her husband in Chelsea, Alabama and loves to speak to schools and civic groups about her family’s experiences.
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