NO LONGER IN PEREL
Born to a German-Jewish family, Solomon Perel and his family fled to Poland in 1935 as the rise of Nazism saw him expelled from school and his father’s store destroyed. Once the Nazis invaded Poland, Perel and his brother relocated once more to a children’s home in what is now Belarus. Unable to escape the Nazis’ grasp, Perel took a major risk to save his hide – posing as an ethnic German. His fluency in German and Russian allowed him to work as a translator, though his young age later sent him to the Hitler Youth. He frequently needed to come up with medical excuses to avoid unveiling he was circumcised, but his wild gambit ultimately succeeded. After settling down in Israel, he went public with his story in the 80s, which was then adapted into acclaimed film Europa Europa. He was 97 and a pick for three teams.
Solomon Perel
21 April 1925 – 2 February 2023, aged 97
3 TEAMS (💀💀💀💀💀 5 POINTS)