10 Elements

10 Elements Outline

Miep Gies

*ALL INFO IS FROM "ANNE FRANK REMEMBERED" BY MIEP GIES*

Birth Date And Place

Miep Gies was born in 1909 in Vienna, Austria. Her original name is Hermine Santruschitz.

Family Members

Miep's mother, father, adopted mother and adopted fathers names are unknown. Her husbands name was Jan "Hank" Gies. She has one child named Paul Gies and a daughter in law named Luce Gies. Lastly, Mieps grandchildren: Erwin,  Jeanine, and David Gies.

Childhood And School Life

When Miep was only 11 years old, she became very sick and malnourished so she was sent away from Austria to Leiden, Amsterdam to improve her condition. She moved in with her adoptive parents and was set to stay for 6 months, but she was still in not the greatest health so she stayed longer. After a year, Miep considered herself dutch and wanted to live with her adoptive parents. She loved classical music and riding her bike and all the kids in school were very nice to her.

Hobbies, Interests And Activities

Miep loved to dance at the nightclubs on the weekends and was one of the first people to learn the Charleston, Two Step, Tango, and the Slow Fox. She would go out dancing on Saturday nights. She also loved pictures or movies. She would regularly go see them whenever she could. Just like when she was a child, she still loved to ride her bike. Miep also likes to work, and took great pride in her independence.

Anecdotes

After almost three years in hiding, the Franks, van Daans, and Dussels luck ran out. On August 4, 1944, a Friday morning, Miep ventured up into the Annex where her Jewish friends were hiding during the holocaust to gather grocery lists. It began just like every normal day. As Miep was working at about 11 or 12 in the afternoon, a man in civilian clothes appeared at the office door with a bin and ordered everyone to stay put and not to move. By this point, Miep was reluctantly, but undoubtedly aware of the situation. The man with the gun left the office and Henk, Mieps husband showed up for lunch. Miep ordered him to leave and he understood and left. Ellie, one of the office assistants was very upset, so Mr. Koophuis sent her away and asked Miep if she would like to go as well, but she replied "I cant". Miep didn't want to leave her friends up in the annex after being there for them all this time. Finally, after some time had passed, a German officer appeared. The German also returned with the dutchman who had first appeared. They split the office up and talked to people individually. The German officer came in to speak to Miep and she realized that he had a Vienna accent and she used this to her advantage. As they talked, the sound of steps came down from the stairs to the annex. "...I could hear the sound of our friends feet. I could tell they were coming down like beaten dogs".

Career

At the age of 24 in 1993, Miep had a difficult time finding a job. She had been fired several months earlier from a textile company and because of her independent attitude, was eager to find more work. One Saturday afternoon, a lady that lived on top of Miep and her adopted family came home with news of a job opening with a man named Otto Frank. When she went to ask about the job, Mr. Frank immediately liked her and began to put her to work, starting with making jam, and then as a service operator. She was originally supposed to work as a fill in, but when the lady she was filling in for came back, she was surprised to see another desk in the office. Mr. Frank had made enough room for the both of them. The worker that returned was named Miss Heel, a lady about the same age as Miep, but blond and chubby. She was a member of the NSB, a dutch Nazi group. She quit after a couple months of her return. Miep worked with the company all through the holocaust.

Reason For Fame

    Miep Gies became famous for the hiding of Anne Frank and her family. For almost three years, she took care of them in the Annex, an attic above Mr Franks business. Throughout time, Meip, Mr. Frank, and his family became very close. In 1939, Hitler began to discriminate against Jewish people and created absurd laws that made life very difficult. Eventually, he started moving jews to concentration camps, and then death camps. While this was happening, Margrot, the oldest of the Frank daughters, was ordered to go to a work camp. The Franks knew this was trouble and began thinking of options. The Franks turned to their close friend, Miep, for help and a place to hide. Miep, as well as her husband were successful in hiding the Franks and their friends until August 4, 1944. The Franks and their friends that were hiding up in the attic were captured. Miep ventured up into the Annex one last time to gather some small items that her friends had in hiding, including all of Anne Frank's writings and journals. Anne Frank’s diary gave insight to the life they lived in the Annex. Fear, claustrophobia, and disease along with all the other problems the friends faced were all explained with lots of detail and emotion. Everyone who lived in the Annex tragically passed away except for Mr. Frank. With some persuasion, Anne’s diary was published and her story touched millions around the world, as well as Miep’s courage and heart. After the publishing of Anne’s diary, people longed for Miep’s side of the story, thus her book, Anne Frank Remembered. (Published April 15, 1988)

Later Life/Old Age

    As Miep Gies got older, she moved away and got a different job. She got pregnant at the age of 40 and gave birth to her son Paul Gies in 1952. Although the holocaust had been over for some time, Miep could never throw away any food. Because of the fame that had grown from both Anne’s and her writings, Miep traveled a lot and told thousands of people her story. Henk, her husband, passed away on January 26, 1993.

Death

Miep Gies passed away in her home on January 11, 2010 just a month before her 101st birthday. She passed away due to a hip injury from a fall in her home. She left on a legacy that the world could not be thankful enough for. Her son, daughter-in-law, and their kids live on in her legacy.