As we move into the heart of the holiday season, I’ve been reflecting on some of the moments that have meant the most to me this year. One of the most meaningful and unexpected moments happened recently during a visit to friends in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was one of those unforgettable experiences that remind me why I continue sharing my parents’ story of survival, love, and triumph.
These friends once worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, where the atomic bomb was developed. They were very excited to take my husband and me to the Bradbury Science Museum, the Lab’s official museum. The museum offers visitors a powerful look at the Lab’s beginnings during the Manhattan Project and how its work continues to support global security today.
As we stood in front of a life‑size replica of the Nagasaki bomb, I overheard two women discussing it. Without thinking, I turned to them and said, “You see this bomb here? It saved my father’s life.” Their jaws dropped.
I explained that while my father was a prisoner of war in Japan, my mother was fighting for her life in Auschwitz. Their eyes widened.
I told them I had written a book about my parents' amazing story called Meant to Be, and they asked how they could get a copy. I handed them my business card, thinking that would be the end of it. But it wasn’t.
They then asked if I was one of the speakers that night at the historic Fuller Lodge. Fuller Lodge is the 1928 log building that served as a central gathering place for scientists, families, and visiting personnel during the Manhattan Project, including Oppenheimer. The Manhattan Project was the secret wartime effort that brought scientists to Los Alamos to develop the first atomic bombs. I’d seen the film Oppenheimer, but had forgotten that several scenes were filmed at Fuller Lodge, which we were told was filled with camera crews during production. I had no idea there was a speaker series held there.
I stepped inside Fuller Lodge, imagining what an honor it would be to speak as part of their speaker series in the very place where Oppenheimer and the other scientists gathered who developed the bombs. Then, through a series of truly “meant to be” events, I was introduced to the Director of the Los Alamos Historical Society, which runs the Los Alamos History Museum as well as the speaker series. When he learned that I am the daughter of an atomic bomb survivor and a Holocaust survivor, he championed getting my book added to the museum’s gift shop, and getting me booked to speak there in September 2026.
Seeing Meant to Be on the shelf at Los Alamos was a profound, full‑circle moment. It honors my father’s side of my parents’ story in the very place where the bomb that saved his life was developed. And it allows me to continue sharing my parents’ extraordinary story with new audiences.
If your organization, community, or workplace is looking for a speaker who brings history to life through resilience, hope, and human connection, I’d be honored to share my parents’ story with your group. Feel free to reach out. I’d love to explore how we can create a meaningful experience together.
