Today would have been Anne Frank's 94th birthday. She was born on June 12th, 1929 in Frankfurt, Germany to Edith and Otto Frank. She and her family were Jewish and out of fear her and her parents and her older sister, Margot moved to Amsterdam, Netherlands in 1933. She spent most of her life in Amsterdam, in 1942 her family went into hiding after Germany had gained occupation of the Netherlands and Margot was ordered to be deported. She went into hiding with her family, Fritz Pfeffer and the Van Pels family which consisted of Hermann Van Pels, his wife, Auguste Van Pels and their son, Peter Van Pels who would later become Anne's boyfriend. Peter also had a cat named Mouschi that was living in the annex, she had to leave behind her own cat, Moortje. Many people helped the people living in the annex by delivering food and necessities, among these people were Miep Gies, Bep Voskuijl, Victor Kugler and Johannes Kleiman. She kept a diary she got on her 13th birthday and directed her diary entries to "Kitty", Anne's imaginary friend. Anne was described as witty, charming and warm, she was intelligent and had many interesting thoughts in her diary, which she confided in. Two years after going into hiding in 1944 Anne and everyone hiding with her was found, there is proof that someone had given away their hiding place. Anne was separated from her family and was deported to Auschwitz. She passed away from Typhus at the age of 15 on March 31st, 1945, only two weeks before Auschwitz was liberated by the Americans. The only surviver of Anne's family and the others living in the annex was Anne's father, Otto Frank who published her diary from her wishes as "The Diary of a Young Girl", sometimes known as "The Diary of Anne Frank" or "Dear Kitty". Otto Frank passed away in 1980, Anne's diary has been translated in more than 70 languages and is the most known personal account of the Holocaust. On her birthday we remember Anne Frank and her life. May Anne Frank, Margot Frank, Edith Frank, Otto Frank, Hermann Van Pels, Auguste Van Pels, Peter Van Pels and Fritz Pfeffer be remembered for their lives and stories.
