“I didn’t think it was going to happen. I’m amazed that it happened.”
On Thursday, Carla Olman Peperzak visited Peperzak Middle School for an all-school assembly in celebration of her 101st birthday. The Holocaust survivor and Dutch Resistance fighter had no idea that the Anne Frank Center USA had an announcement to share.
The school will be the 18th location in the United States to receive a sapling germinated from the horse chestnut tree that Anne Frank could see while hiding with her family from the Nazis during World War II. The Anne Frank Tree will be planted at Peperzak this spring.
Local media also attended Thursday's event:
The Spokesman-Review: Peperzak Middle School surprises namesake holocaust survivor with sapling from Anne Frank’s tree for 101st birthday
KREM 2 News: Anne Frank Tree sapling set to come to Peperzak Middle School in 2025