Hans Peter, my father, was looking forward to the 1936 Olympics.

At the time, he lived in Berlin, where the Games were to be held, with his mother, Margarethe Arnhold (nee Jacobsohn) and brother Walter. My father joined a swimming program with high aspirations, but was not allowed to continue his training as he was Jewish. The family deemed it best to emigrate around that time. It was a daunting task, but my grandmother was a woman of strength, courage and vision. Upon settling in Melbourne, she saw the need to assist new immigrants and together with several others, formed an organisation called Mutual Help, which later became the Emmy Monash home for the aged. She was the home’s first president but sadly died at the age of 56. She lived long enough, however, to see her sons settled in a new land with a future. Life was not all easy in Australia though. When World War II struck, my father was deemed an enemy alien as he was an immigrant from Germany and was sent to an Allied work camp in Alice Springs. After his release, my father and uncle specialised in the manufacturing of folding beds and owned a successful business called Arnbro until they both retired.

My maternal grandmother Julie (Cohn) Van Engel also originated from Germany and lived in Gelsenkirchen with a large extended family.

In the run-up to the war, they, too, felt it would be safer to emigrate. Some members followed family connections to the United States and others went to Holland. Unfortunately, Germany subsequently occupied the Netherlands and my mother, along with her parents, sister and brother, were hidden by a Righteous Gentile (a term identifying non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from the Nazis) family. That family belonged to the Dutch Reform Church and humbly said they were only doing their Christian duty. My mother’s family eventually survived the war and migrated to Australia, although my great-grandmother was taken by the Gestapo (Nazi German secret police) and sent to the gas chambers.

My parents met and married in Melbourne.

I was born in July 1949 and I have a younger brother who is also living in Melbourne. Through my maternal grandmother, who stayed with us for most of my early life, we both lived rich, cultural lives with a European flavour. I met my husband, Philip Brass, when I was 16 and we have been married for 44 years. We have two children – Nicholas, who is in the green energy business and Natalie, who is a teacher. We also have two adorable grandchildren, Max and Ava. Life in Australia has been good. We were fortunate to live for over 20 years in a historic property in Toorak known as Miegunyah which had been developed by Miegunyah Press patron Russell Grimwade. We opened our home and garden on many occasions to charitable events but when the children left home, it was time to downsize and we have just settled back into a newly renovated and much smaller property with which we are delighted.

My husband and I now enjoy going for walks and spending time with friends over a coffee.

I enjoy a social game of golf when time permits. I am also a member of two book clubs but unfortunately do not always have time to read all the books. Still, the coffee and cake are always good! I was involved at the Melbourne Magistrates Court for nearly 20 years as a volunteer Court Networker and am currently the Victorian President of the National Council of Jewish Women of Australia. Our organisation, which is an affiliate of the International Council of Jewish Women, promotes empowerment of women through a variety of programs centred on isolated communities, the aged and new mothers to name a few. For me, having the opportunity to meet like-minded women from all over the world and sharing interests but with different foci, is truly stimulating.