Rochelle Talmage honors her mother, Aranka Bergida Zelenka, who was born in Cop, Czechoslovakia, in 1918. She was known as “Zlatya” when she lived in Europe. A Holocaust survivor, she chose not to share the details of her story with her daughter in order to protect her from unnecessary grief or suffering. During her life, Zelenka worked as a couture designer and dressmaker; her younger sister Helena worked as her assistant. During the war, the two women helped each other survive.
The Nashville Holocaust Memorial