Our Story

The opening decades of the 20th century in Austria were rife with turmoil. Austria, next to Germany was an early target for Hitler’s terror. Austria quickly became part of the Third Reich, to young couple Ilse and Henry Adler, Austria was the only home they ever knew.
What would have been a happy time for a newly married couple is fraught with terror. Henry is taken to a concentration camp, Ilse, carrying their infant son, works to secure Henry’s release and safe passage to America for her family. After over a year of growing desperation, Henry and Ilse finally arrive in the distant land of Michigan—scared and unfamiliar, but safe.
The Adlers must then simultaneously acclimate to life as new parents in a new country and create a stable environment for their growing family. Through the kindness of strangers and their own fortitude, Henry and Ilse finally begin to see the beauty in a world that was once only cloaked in chaos.
Our Story is a heart wrenching tale of family and survival, 100 years in the making.
Ilse Adler’s life began in Vienna, Austria—where she was born and raised, schooled, married, and ultimately ed. Ilse, a wife and mother, was also well educated and worked as a nurse, social worker, and community advocate during her life.
John Steve Adler is Ilse’s oldest child. Steve was raised in Traverse City, Michigan. He became an engineer and worked for almost fifty years in public safety communications. At Ilse’s request, Steve serves as the editor and now publisher of her book that she began writing several decades ago.