An incredible weekend at Hitler’s concentration camp for women: the 70th anniversary of Ravensbruck’s libration.

The 70th anniversary of the liberation of Ravensbruck could not have been a more fitting tribute to the brave survivors of Hitler’s all-female camp. The staff of the beautifully renovated Ravensbruck Memorial Museum, led by executive director Dr. Insa Eschebach, presented a tremendously moving, weekend-long program that celebrated the women.

The crowd became overcome with emotion as we stood at what has become known as “the shooting wall,” (above, left) the alleyway behind the massive Nazi administration building, since this is where Ravensbruck staff brought women to be executed. There was a moment of silence for the survivors to remember their sisters and friends at the camp who made the terrible last trip to this wall. Many of the Polish women executed here, their love for Poland strong to the end, shouted “Long live Poland!” before they died, one final act of resistance against their captors.

The shooting wall was dedicated to a lovely former prisoner named Grazyna Chrostowska who was executed here. She was an accomplished poet and, as the crowd gathered, one of her poems was read. The survivors described Grazyna as a sweet girl, good friend to all, who did many kind things for other prisoners and they were visibly moved by the dedication in her honor.

On Sunday, survivors and their families from all the nations represented at Ravensbruck tossed flowers into the lake, which the camp borders, commemorating the many women whose ashes were tossed into the lake directly from the nearby crematorium.

The flowers drifted out into the lake toward the town of Furstenberg in the distance.

Above, Polish mass in the punishment bunker, once the site of terrible torture, solitary confinement and other inhumane treatment of women.

Two of the 72 women who were known as “the Rabbits,” victims of medical experiments at Ravensbruck, attended the anniversary and I had the extreme pleasure of meeting both, Wanda Rosiewicz and Stanislawa Sledziejewska-Osiczko. Here, Wanda walks to the lakefront to commemorate her lost friends.

What a thrill it was to spend time with sweet Wanda and Stanislawa and hear the incredible stories of survival of “the Rabbits of Ravensbruck.” They told many of those for the cameras and it was so moving to hear how they evaded their Nazi captors. In the last months of the camp as the camp became terribly overcrowded “the Rabbits” hid in holes under the camp barracks for weeks, evading their Nazi captors who hunted the women to destroy the human evidence of their experimentation.

Wanda getting ready for the camera, to tell her story.

Stanislwa, a true celebrity, always surrounded by people interested in her incredible story.

It was a fascinating weekend and I found so many great old photos, stories and other new things to share about Ravensbruck. Excited to talk about them here in coming blogs!