Coral Springs Man Who Survived Nazism Recounts Harrowing Journey of Escape, Survival

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Coral Springs resident Eric Lipetz recently shared his extraordinary journey of survival during World War II, detailing his Jewish family’s escape from Nazi-occupied Europe to the Japanese-occupied Philippines in a powerful testimony.

Born on October 31, 1936, in Antwerp, Belgium, to a father who studied there and a Polish mother, the survivor’s childhood was upended by the Nazi regime. His family’s desperate flight began in 1940 as they attempted to flee Belgium and reach France, hoping the invading Germans would be thwarted by the Maginot Line – concrete fortifications built by the French to ward off a Nazi invasion.

“We tried to escape as quickly as we could. Some of my mother’s sisters were living near us, and we made a convoy,” Lipetz, 88, recalled in his April 17 talk at Coral Springs City Hall. “We were trying to get to France, hoping that the Germans would respect the Maginot Line and not cross over. Well, it wasn’t like that at all.”

Near Dunkirk, in northern France, they faced aerial attacks from Nazi Luftwaffe planes – a trauma that left indelible memories.

“They were strafing and bombing everything,” said Lipetz. “We lay down in ditches. My father, Abe, was lying on top of me and my brother. My mother was lying on top of my oldest brother.”

The aftermath was horrific: “You get up and you see cars on fire, and you see people on the road, and you see blood all over and you see people screaming, ‘Help me. Help me.’ And there’s nothing you can do.”

Needing money to fund their escape, Lipetz’s father retrieved diamonds from a bank safe deposit box in Belgium. Abe Lipetz and one of his sons narrowly escaped several run-ins with the Nazis by posing as non-Jews. They later reunited with Eric Lipetz, his mother, and Lipetz’s other two brothers in Spain.

The Lipetzes next took a train to Portugal, a journey on which a German spy was found riding in one of the train cars, taken off the train, and shot, Lipetz said.

The family next boarded a ship to New York, navigating waters patrolled by Nazi submarines to reach New York Harbor.

“You know what we saw there? An angel, the most beautiful woman in the world. There she was, the Statue of Liberty,” Lipetz recalled.

At Ellis Island, U.S. officials told the family that Congress had recently passed a law strictly limiting Jewish immigration. The family, one official said, would have to leave.

“He said, ‘Look, I’m only following orders.’ My father said, ‘Boy, I heard that one before,’” said Lipetz.

Knowing a return to Europe would mean either death or imprisonment by the Nazis, the Lipetzes arranged to sail for the Philippines, where a company owned by Lipetz’s businessman uncle had a factory.

American General Douglas MacArthur was already in the island nation, Lipetz said, trying to ward off Japanese forces. But after Imperial Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, the Axis powers also took over the Philippines.

“My father said to my mother, ‘You know what? We may not be able to get out of here, but we can try to survive.’ He went out and bought as many canned goods as he could.”

Lipetz shared a crucial survival tip: “If you take canned goods and you turn it over every week, turn it over, turn it over every week, they will last forever, almost forever. And they did with us. They lasted for years.”

The Nazi-allied Japanese soon arrived in Manila, capital of the Philippines, and captured the Lipetzes.

To survive, Abe Lipetz made a deal with a Japanese military official: He would lead a group of Filipinos in servicing Japanese guns in exchange for his family’s freedom.

But Abe soon double-crossed the Japanese, teaming up with Filipino guerrilla forces to sabotage the weapons.

During the Japanese occupation, Filipino civilians risked their lives to help his family, Eric Lipetz said.

In one harrowing incident, when Japanese soldiers were rounding up civilians, “One of the Filipinos jumped off the truck, ran through the whole crowd, grabbed my two brothers and me, ran through the crowd again and threw us into the garbage truck. Smelled like you can imagine. But who cares?” Lipetz said.

All but Abe Lipetz escaped capture that day, his son said. The family’s patriarch was taken to a Japanese prison, where he bribed his way out with coveted cigarettes — and a promise to supply occupying Japanese troops with more.

Reunited once more, the Lipetzes fled into the Filipino jungle with help from the guerrillas. There, they endured sickness and hunger for months.

The American planes that roared overhead while bombing Japanese troops came so close, Lipetz said, that he permanently lost much of his hearing.

Later, he and a brother climbed atop a small church in the area and witnessed something astounding.

“We saw angels from America, thousands of soldiers, amphibious boats, tanks, trucks, everything,” said Lipetz. “They were coming to free us.”

American forces liberated the Philippines and kept the Lipetzes safe amid fighting with the Japanese.

Since Abe Lipetz had aided the Filipinos in their fight against the Japanese, U.S. State Department officials granted the family U.S. visas. They arrived in America in 1945, Eric Lipetz said.

Lipetz, who became a citizen in 1956, went on to graduate from college, serve in the U.S. Army, and marry his wife of nearly 60 years. A stockbroker and veteran, he also spent a considerable amount of time in Israel.

Lipetz’s testimony serves as a powerful reminder of both the horrors of the Holocaust and the resilience of those who survived it, highlighting the often-overlooked story of Jewish refugees who found sanctuary in the Philippines during World War II.

“The Filipino people, I must tell you, in general, are the nicest people you’ll ever want to meet. If they’re your friends, your friends for life,” he concluded, honoring those who helped his family survive against overwhelming odds.

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Kevin Deutsch

Kevin Deutsch is an award-winning journalist and author of two nonfiction books. He covers general assignment news and Jewish community issues for Talk Media. He has also worked as a staff writer at The Miami Times, the Rio Grande SUN, the New York Daily News, Newsday, The Miami Herald, The Palm Beach Post, The Riverdale Press, and Bronx Justice News.