Belaaz Exclusive: Holocaust Survivor Describes Moving Oval Office Meeting With President Trump

President Trump hosted five Holocaust survivors in the Oval Office on Tuesday, in a meeting Belaaz has learned was arranged over an extended period by the Nachas organization before finally coming together.

Among the five survivors was Mrs. Blau of Borough Park, who spoke with Belaaz following the visit and described an experience she called deeply moving.

Mrs. Blau said that aside from the President, she was especially thrilled to meet his son in law Jared Kushner during the visit, and marveled at the Oval Office itself, calling it beautiful.

Describing the officials she met, she said with a smile that Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks “like a little boy,” adding that President Trump was “even better looking in real life.”

The president was in good spirits throughout the meeting, according to Mrs. Blau.

At one point, one of the other survivors mentioned that four children urgently needed to fly out for special medical treatment but lacked the funds to do so. The family had reached out to the White House for help. Mrs. Blau recounted that the president turned to one of the survivors and asked who she thought had covered the cost. “It was me,” he told her.

The survivors were asked by the president to describe what they had endured, and he asked them how they had managed to survive. Mrs. Blau reflected on the extensive Secret Service presence and the security involved simply in reaching the Oval Office, saying she was struck by the process.

For Mrs. Blau, the visit to the Oval Office itself was the highlight of the day. She recalled telling the president that he should always keep Israel in his thoughts, to which he responded, “Of course, of course, Madam.”

Mrs. Blau says that each of the five survivors was presented with a presidential coin taken from the Oval Office desk before they departed. Asked what she planned to do with hers, Mrs. Blau laughed and said she wasn’t sure yet, noting simply, “It’s not a Rebbishe coin.”

All of the survivors were given brachos for health and long life by the White House staff, including the president.