They finally hug again after 82 years. Amazing story about childhood friends

For over eight decades, Betty Grebenschikoff believed her childhood best friend from Germany had died. The last time she saw Ana María Wahrenberg was in 1939, when they were only 9 years old. The girls shared a tearful hug in a Berlin schoolyard before their families were forced to escape the Holocaust during World War II.

Grebenschikoff and Wahrenberg thought that would be their final meeting, but on November 5, after 82 years apart, they saw each other in the flesh once again. Both women are now 91 years old!

A photo of Ana Maria Wahrenberg as a young girl

Wahrenberg echoed her thoughts, saying, “It was very emotional. It was like we were never separated.” The Holocaust survivors had tried to find each other for years, searching databases and seeking information from anyone who might know something about the other’s whereabouts. Unfortunately, they had no luck because both had changed their names later in life.

“She is now called Ana Maria. She remembers me by my previous name of Ilse Kohn,” said Grebenschikoff, who now lives in Florida. Thankfully, the USC Shoah Foundation, a nonprofit organization that produces and preserves audiovisual recollections of Holocaust survivors, noticed similarities in Grebenschikoff’s and Wahrenberg’s testimonies. This discovery led to their most-awaited reunion.

Grebenschikoff, one of the 20,000 European Jews who settled in Shanghai, finally understood what happened to her long-lost best friend. In November 1939, Wahrenberg and her family ran off to Santiago, Chile, where she still lives today.

A picture of young Ana

Their virtual reunion, facilitated by the Shoah Foundation, the Florida Holocaust Museum, and the Interactive Jewish Museum of Chile, happened over a Zoom call last November. The two women talked in their native German and introduced their families to each other. They also vowed to meet in person. A year later, they made good on that promise.

“We just had this sense, like we genuinely belonged together,” they stated as they hugged for the first time in nearly eight decades. They had planned to meet in Florida for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, in September. The pandemic, however, forced them to postpone their in-person reunion. Wahrenberg, on the other hand, felt more at ease traveling by November and scheduled a flight with her son and his wife.

A photo of Betty Grebenschikoff as a young girl

Wahrenberg was met at her hotel room by Grebenschikoff, who described it as “as if we had seen each other yesterday” and “so comfortable.” “It was quite special that two people could still love each other after 82 years,” Wahrenberg added. For four days, the best friends, both widowed, were inseparable. They went shopping together, ate meals together, and spoke for hours.

“We’re not the girls we used to be when we were 9, that’s for sure, but we kept giggling like we were little kids,” Grebenschikoff said of their meeting. “It was such a joy for both of us.” Of course, their reunion wouldn’t be complete without gifts. Wahrenberg gave Grebenschikoff a Barbie doll wearing a Chilean costume and a framed photograph of herself and some jewelry.

A picture of young Betty

On the other hand, Grebenschikoff gave Wahrenberg a small heart-shaped sculpture, which she also bought a copy of for herself so that they have the exact same thing. “It’s something for her to remember me and for me to remember her,” Grebenschikoff said. She displays the doll and photo in her bedroom. Grebenschikoff’s favorite memory of their time together was simple: “Being close to one another, and holding hands while we were walking. It felt right.”

Wahrenberg’s favorite was reminiscing about the old times and introducing their families to one another over lunch. Today, Wahrenberg’s son and Grebenschikoff’s daughter are now friends, too. Every Sunday for the past year, the two women have a phone call date, during which they sit on their respective patios and have their morning coffee together.

Betty Grebenschikoff and Ana María Wahrenberg

Grebenschikoff plans to visit Wahrenberg in Santiago in the future. Reflecting on their journey, she said their story proves that “good things can happen out of a bad experience.” Watch the pair’s interview with NBC News in the video below to learn more about their story.

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