Meet an “Amazing” Whose Cherished Dream Finally Came True

Esther Begam, age 88, fulfilled a life-long dream this year: her high-school diploma. Her own schooling was cut short when, as an young teen, she was interred at a Nazi forced labor camp, along with her entire family. She alone survived, made her way to the US, where she married and raised her family.

One of the many speeches Esther has made on the horrors of the Holocaust--to make sure it never happens again---was to Candice Ledman’s class at Wayzata High School some 7 years ago. Esther said that her Nazi ordeal had deprived her of a high school diploma and graduation, which she greatly regretted as she’d been brought up in a family that valued education.

It took years, but Candice put the wheels in motion that led to what is now one of Esther’s most cherished moments: graduating with an honorary diploma alongside Wayzata’s class of 2017.

For more Amazings, go to #MeetTheAmazings, MeetTheAmazings.com.