Denise Hans was born in France on June 21, 1938. Her father (Michel) and mother (Perla) moved to France from Poland in the early 1920’s. Denise’s father and several other family members were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Due to the efforts of her mother, Denise and her siblings went into hiding. They remained with their caregivers until their mother was able to take them back home in 1948.