‘A Chanukah miracle’: Two Holocaust survivors in their 90s get vaccinated

Two Holocaust survivors in their 90s have received the first round of coronavirus vaccines.

Lily Ebert, 96, received the Pfizer/BioNTech jab on Thursday afternoon at a GP surgery, with her great-grandson Dov Forman calling it a “Chanukah miracle”.

The Hungarian born Auschwitz survivor got the vaccine as communal social care organisation urge staff and service users to apply for it.

Getting the jab before the eighth night of Chanukah, the Holocaust Educational Trust said Lily’s “feeling amazing and is very thankful to everyone involved”.

Last week, Eve Kugler, 89, became the first known survivor to get the injection.

Earlier on Thursday, Harry Kessler, who was born in 1930 and fled from Czechoslovakia to England, received his jab.

The 90-year-old who lives in Southport said he was: “Absolutely delighted to have had my first anti-Covid vaccine injection delivered at a local health centre.”

He praised the “excellent system with minimum queueing and everyone apparently being seen at their appointment time or within 2 or 3 minutes of it. Now, next day, I feel no after effects and am looking forward to completing the job at my next appointment in three weeks.”

The Holocaust Educational Trust quoted Dov’s tweet, saying: “We are so delighted to see our beloved survivors getting the vaccine and can’t wait to be reunited with them when it’s safe for us to do so.”

This week, there was anger after Brent-based care home, Jewish Choice was told it may have to wait 10-weeks to get vaccinations for its staff and residents.

• Read more: Zooming in on Shoah education