Born in Haarlem, Holland, Cornelia "Corrie" ten Boom (1892–1983) was a gifted watchmaker, the first woman in her town to practice the trade. But her life’s greatest work came through faith and fierce compassion during history’s darkest hours.

During the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, she and her family opened their home—known as el Beje—as a secret refuge for Jews escaping persecution. It became The Hiding Place. In 1944, betrayed by someone she tried to help, Corrie was arrested and imprisoned in Ravensbrück, a brutal women’s concentration camp.

Even in prison, she led secret prayer gatherings, sharing hope and strength with fellow prisoners. A clerical error released her just one week before all women her age were executed. She believed it was divine providence.

After the war, Corrie ten Boom traveled the world not with anger, but with a torch of faith and a call to forgiveness the unforgivable. She bore witness to cruelty—and chose compassion. She had every reason to close her heart—and instead, she opened it wider.

After the war, Corrie traveled the world speaking of forgiveness. Her most powerful message: to forgive the unforgivable. “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God,” she said.

Her legacy is one of courage, healing, and quiet hope. A life not measured by its length, but by the love it gave away. She showed the world: light can still rise after the worst has happened—and the heart can still choose mercy.

Her enduring legacy is one of courage, healing, and hope. She reminded the world that the measure of a life is not in its duration, but in its donation.