Nancy Weil

Nancy Weil

The Herz Scholarship

“Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”
- Antoine de Saint Exupery

The Herz Scholarship was established in loving memory of Eric and Hanna Herz by their granddaughter Nancy Weil.

Their story is one of resilience and love that overcame all obstacles. They met in Bremen, Germany in 1932. Eric, an Orthodox Jew, fell in love with Hanna, a Lutheran, just as Hitler was coming to power. Wed in 1933 they began a family with daughter, Irmgard and settled into life together. Their life was changed forever when Eric was taken to a concentration camp on “crystal night.” Told that he would be released upon proof of passage to another country, Hanna secured a visa to Ecuador. Speaking not a word of Spanish, Eric still found work and the family settled into life in South America.

With sponsorship from a relative in the United States, they were finally able to move to Cincinnati, Ohio in 1940. While his sister had earlier immigrated to Palestine, the rest of his family, including his parents, brother and nephew all perished in concentration camps.

Throughout their lives, Eric and Hanna worked hard to provide for their family. They came to Cincinnati with almost nothing and soon started a family business selling dry cleaning and tailor supplies, which their daughter and her husband, Ralph, later joined. Eric had a love of the stock market and through sound investments he was able to provide money to each of his seven great-grandchildren to fund their college educations. It was their desire that their daughter, grandchildren and great-grandchildren received the education that they were never able to pursue.

Herz means heart in German and both Eric and Hanna gave joyfully from their hearts to those in need. Despite the difficult times they endured, they always had one another to lean on and their love inspired all of those who spent time with the happy couple.

The Herz Scholarship will be awarded to a woman studying through the college’s Niagara Frontier location who is returning to school in order to provide for herself and her children a better life following challenging times. This scholarship is funded through The Laugh Academy. A portion of the proceeds of each sale of the book “If Stress Doesn’t Kill You, Your Family Might” goes towards the Herz Scholarship.