Events › Words, documents and photos – the creation of memoir

Words, documents and photos – the creation of memoir

An interview with Morrin Rout.

You are warmly invited to join siblings Deborah and Simon in conversation. They will talk about capturing their mother Inge Woolf's life story after her death, to complete her memoir 'Resilience: A story of Persecution, Escape, Survival and Triumph'. 

Please register to attend the event.

About the speakers

Morrin Rout has a rich literary life organising events and festivals and producing and presenting book programmes on national and local radio. She is the former Director of the Hagley Writers Institute and is a current member of the WORD festival trust board.

Deborah Hart is a former lawyer. She chairs the independent review of Aotearoa New Zealand’s electoral laws, chairs the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand and is also a panel member of the Human Rights Review Tribunal.

Simon Woolf is an eminent New Zealand photographer, a Wellington regional councillor and former city councillor.

About the book 

Resilience is a Holocaust story and a New Zealand story.

Born to a prosperous Jewish family, Inge Woolf witnessed the Nazis marching into her home-town, Vienna in March 1938. To escape certain death, the family audaciously boarded a train to the heart of Nazi Germany – Berlin – and from there caught a plane to England, pretending they were going on holiday. Hiding their Jewish identity until after World War II, Inge and her family began a new life as impoverished refugees.

A move to New Zealand signaled new beginnings. Inge met the love of her life, Ronald Woolf, and together they created the country's pre-eminent photographic studio in Wellington. There they raised two children – photographer and city councillor, Simon Woolf and former lawyer and consultant, Deborah Hart.

Tragedy struck again with Ron killed at age 57 in a helicopter crash in 1987. Responding to the desecration of Jewish graves in Makara, Wellington, Inge determined to use her experiences for good. Resilience is ultimately the story of a woman who harnessed her past and used it to encourage a more cohesive, inclusive society.

In her later years, Inge was pivotal in establishing the Holocaust Centre of New Zealand and was its founding director. She educated thousands on the Holocaust and the dangers of antisemitism, prejudice and apathy often observing that hate starts small. She was called on by the media to comment about antisemitism and would speak freely about the need to remember the lessons learned from the Nazi genocide.

Inge’s memoir, Resilience was published in May.

This event is held in conjunction with the Finding Hope Exhibition.

Monday 19 June - Friday 30 June

Finding Hope | Seeking Refuge in Aotearoa New Zealand

An exhibition of eight graphic style banners that explain New Zealand’s response to the Holocaust and the significance of this event in our history.

Resilience