POST FALLS - A Holocaust history lesson came to life for Tegan Uemoto and other River City Middle School students on Monday.

Carla Peperzak, who protected fellow Jews during the Dutch resistance of Nazis during World War II, talked with students about her experiences.

"She's a primary source," Uemoto, an eighth-grader, said of Peperzak. "Her stories need to be shared with our younger generation. She's not always going to be there, and neither are other Holocaust survivors."

Eighth-grader Dane Ford said people such as Peperzak remind him that freedom should not be taken lightly or forgotten.

"The Holocaust was an awful time in history, something that we should remember and strive to never happen again," he said, referring to the genocide in which about six million Jews were killed by the Nazi regime.

Peperzak, of Spokane, was born and raised in Amsterdam. She was 16 in the spring of 1940 when the Germans invaded the Netherlands.

"When I was doing a final exam, bombs were falling around me," she said. "It took Germany five days to conquer the country."

Peperzak said at first the Nazis promised to obey Dutch laws, but the situation gradually and persistently changed.

"They gained control over all branches of government and the Jewish civil servants were dismissed," she said.

Peperzak said about 75 percent of the Jewish population in Holland were killed and that ratio was also true for her whole family.

"It was a very difficult life," she said softly.

Eight members of Peperzak's family were prisoners at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi death camp in Poland.

The Nazis imposed one stranglehold after another, Peperzak said. Her father was forced to close his clothing manufacturing business. The bank deposits of Jewish citizens were confiscated. They were given only a small stipend to buy food and there were food rations. They were not allowed in most shops or to use most forms of public transportation.

"Most of the Jewish people became very poor and were not allowed to work or join a union," Peperzak said.

When Peperzak went into hiding, she learned to make identifications and change Jewish names. Jews had a "J" next to their photos on identification cards, but Peperzak made ones without the letter to allow for more privileges.

"I came very good at (making identifications), but it was very dangerous," she said. "Fortunately, I never got caught. I was always afraid."

Peperzak estimates she helped 40 people hide from the Nazis. She was 18 when she first helped family members go into hiding at a farmhouse thanks to a trusted neighbor. She found spots for other Jews in attics, crawl spaces and basements. She would visit them about once a month - often via bicycle - bringing them medication, stolen ration cards and food. Peperzak donned a nurse's uniform to lessen her chances of being caught.

Peperzak was a member of a mostly Jewish rowing club.

"Seven of my friends were taken and I never heard from them again," she said.

Peperzak grew up a block from the family of Anne Frank, the famous diarist. The families attended the same Reform temple. Frank was six years younger than Peperzak, but Anne's sister, Margot, was only a year younger than Peperzak.

"I did not know Anne very well, but her sister and I were in class together," Peperzak said. "I was in the Frank house once or twice before they went into hiding."

Peperzak said she hopes youths will take messages from the Holocaust to heart.

"It's important that you learn to respect all of your neighbors, even if you don't agree with them, so that this never happens again," she told the students.

Peperzak moved to the United States with her husband in 1948. For years, she didn't speak publicly about the Holocaust, but now she speaks about six times a year because there are few survivors left. She was recently honored by the Washington Legislature for her bravery.

Eighth-grader Sammi Schumacker called Peperzak's story "fascinating." The happy ending, Schumacker said, was the best.

"I liked how she found marriage and moved on with life with kids and grandkids," Schumacker said. "She was still able to turn things around."