Twice-Rescued Child

A True Story of Rescue — Not Once, But Twice

At eight years old, Thomas Graumann boarded a train in Prague, Czechoslovakia, believing he was headed off on a three-month holiday. “Go to Britain, learn English, and when the Germans leave, you can come home again,” his mother assured him. It was the last time he would ever see her — or most of his Jewish family, who perished in concentration camps.

Thomas was number 652 of the 669 children saved by Nicholas Winton, the hero who carried Jewish children from Czechoslovakia to safety in the United Kingdom aboard what became known as the Kindertransport. That was his first rescue.

His second rescue came a year later. In the Scottish village where he had been placed for safety, an evangelist shared the good news of Jesus Christ with him. On bended knee, Thomas prayed and his soul was rescued — and he soon dedicated his life to missionary service, which he fulfilled as an adult in the Philippines before moving to the United States.

After the fall of Communism — and the return of his grandmother’s property to the family — Thomas was finally free to return to the Czech Republic, traveling throughout his homeland and speaking in schools about how he was rescued… not once, but twice.

Why You’ll Love This Book

• A gripping true story of a Kindertransport child saved by Nicholas Winton
• A moving testimony of grief, survival, and faith after the Holocaust
• See how one man turned rescue into a life of missionary service
• Be inspired to share hope, faith, and courage with the next generation

Grades: Adults

Subjects & Topics

World War II, the Holocaust, the Kindertransport, Nicholas Winton, Jewish history, Christian biography, salvation and faith, missionary service, the Philippines, Czech history