Miep Gies Research Paper

Who is Miep Gies? Miep Gies was born into a poor family in “Vienna, Austria” (The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust). As a result of this, she moved in with a Dutch family. She said, “In 1933, I lived with my adoptive parents, the Nieuwenhuises, at Gaaspstraat 25, sharing a small, cozy attic room with my adoptive sister, Catherina” (Gies 15). Miep’s birth name was Hermine, but she was given the Dutch nickname “Miep” and it stuck. When she reached her teenage years, she visited her birth parents. They felt like strangers to her, so she was allowed to go back to her adopted parents. She worked at an embroidery and pleating workshop at 18 but lost it because of the economic crisis. She finished school and then worked as an office assistant until the …show more content…
Miep was employed as a desk worker by Otto Frank and had a special friendship with him. Miep was at work one day when Otto called her in. In their interaction, “Otto asks Miep to hide and feed those that were going to hide in the Annex because they would be evading Nazi capture” (Gies 88). She agreed to help from (July 6, 1942-August 4, 1944) (Yad Vashem) Miep Gies gave her word and took care of everyone in the Annex. Her loyalty continued after they were found when she rescued Anne’s diary, and saved it for anyone who …show more content…
Miep made a positive impact on the lives of those who lived in the annex in three ways, the first being risking her life (food and security), the second being trying to make their lives comfortable, and the third being Anne’s diary. Miep risked her life in many ways for those in the Annex. She was “approached about joining a girl’s Nazi group which she declined.” This affected her life because she did not subscribe mindlessly to Hitler and the Nazi’s agenda and instead of selling out those in the Annex she did the opposite. On top of bringing them food from her own meager rations, she tried to make their lives more comfortable. She brought them news of the world outside and helped other Jews hide.

What did she do before and after becoming such an important figure in Anne Frank’s life? Miep grew up with her adopted parents before she started searching for a job. Miep had been job searching for sometime when “My adoptive mother called me in from the kitchen and enthusiastically told me about the job.” The year was 1933 and Miep was 24 at the time. Miep worked for Otto while Anne and the rest of his family were still in a German city near Holland. She continued to work for Otto when Anne and the rest of Otto’s family moved to

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