During World War II, Ralph Troll was a small boy living with his parents in Darmstadt, Germany. Their city was known as Wissenschaftsstadt (City of Science). Ralph's mother was Jewish so, in 1938, his father moved his family to an isolated farm about ten miles from the Rhine River. His father hoped to escape Nazi persecution. He knew it was a threat to his wife.

His father was a chemist and continued his work, even though his laboratory had been bombed. To escape the Allied bombs, Ralph, his parents, and his baby sister often spent nights in the cellar of the farmhouse or days in nearby foxholes. His father built cots so they could be a bit more comfortable in their new cellar "bedroom." Their home sat on five acres. They grew asparagus and potatoes, and raised chickens, rabbits and goats. They were well fed, unlike many others during this time, who often went hungry. Like most people, they had neither running water nor electricity. A kerosene lamp provided light, and they pumped their water from the ground. There were good German neighbors in the countryside who risked their lives to protect Jews who were running and hiding. They, along with Ralph's family, were cheering for the Allies to win, knowing they could stop Hitler's madness.

Although there was a constant fear of attack or betrayal, Ralph and his parents worked hard to keep food on the table and to help others when they could. In February of 1945, the Gestapo appeared in the middle of the night and took his mother away to Theresienstadt concentration camp. She traveled for five days on a cattle car to reach her destination, which was a forced labor camp and, thankfully, not a death camp.

While working as a slave at this camp Ralph's mother was surrounded by a deadly sickness known as typhus and received a very meager food supply. Three months after she was taken, Ralph's father received a letter in the mail which was a receipt for his mother. She was treated no better than an animal - all because of her Jewish faith.
When Ralph's mother was discovered and taken, Ralph was officially designated a Halbjude, or "half Jew," and was not allowed to continue his schooling beyond the elementary level. The Nazi Party believed any Jew, even a half Jew, was unworthy of education. The Nazis had taken over the schools, requiring teachers to swear an oath of allegiance to the Nazi Party and changing the school day to resemble military training, complete with marching and indoctrination through Nazi propaganda.

By then Ralph was twelve years old. He was fearful, yet hopeful, that his family would survive and they would be reunited. His younger sister was being cared for by a family in a nearby town because his father felt she would be safer there. Months later, after World War II ended, the Russians liberated Theresienstadt concentration camp, allowing his mother to return to her family. The Trolls were determined to leave Europe and come to the United States, so they made their way to a Displaced Persons camp where they took care of the necessary paperwork.
They were on board the SS Ernie Pyle when Ralph first saw the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor on January 16, 1947. His family then made their way from New York to Illinois. Ralph resumed his schooling in Chicago, unable to speak English but determined to get his education. After serving in the United States Army during the Korean War, he earned a Ph.D.
Today he is professor emeritus of biology at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. Ralph and his wife, Loretta, have three children, seven grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.

Ralph advises students: "Don't ever let anyone tell you you're not worthy of an education." This brilliant young man, whom Hitler deemed unworthy, knows education is one thing nobody can ever take away from you.