She assumed a friend’s identity just to survive the Holocaust. It was a desperate move that separated her from her family for more than 60 years.

After her death, a letter and the American Red Cross reunited her scattered family.

When Annaliese Marten’s Italian friend, Bianca, was killed in 1946, Annaliese assumed Bianca’s identity and fled with her brothers and sisters from East Germany to West Germany. Annaliese was so afraid that she continued to live as Bianca and, while going by that name, met a U.S. soldier and fell in love.

Bianca and the soldier moved to America, where they had six children, before divorcing in 1958. Many years later, Bianca married Mitchell Stevens, with whom she went on to have two additional children. Bianca mentioned to Mitchell that her real name was Annaliese Marten, but never told him more than that. She continued going by Bianca for the rest of her life.

Following her passing in 2004, Mitchell saw a news story about a family reunited by the Red Cross. He contacted the Red Cross in 2006 with documents and photos that his wife had kept in an old green satchel. The American Red Cross Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center initiated tracing and, this February, the German Red Cross tracked down her nephew. Now, two of Bianca’s children have traveled to Germany to meet cousins they never knew they had.

More than 1,200 people, like Bianca’s family, have been reunited with family members scattered by the Holocaust and international wars. They contact their local Red Cross chapter, and an international tracing case is opened for the family, and requests are sent to the Holocaust and War Victims Tracing Center (HWVTC), a national clearinghouse for persons seeking the fates of loved ones missing since the Holocaust and its aftermath.

Since its inception in 1990, the HWVTC has documented the fates of more than 12,000 victims of Nazi persecution. The HWVTC assists U.S. residents searching for proof of internment, forced/slave labor, or evacuation from former Soviet territories on themselves or family members.

All tracing services are confidential and free of charge. For questions regarding this service or aid in beginning a search, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .