Alfons Heck

Alfons Heck, a proactive voice against the horrors of Hitler's regime, was at first an ardent supporter of the Nazi party. Born in Wittlich, Germany in 1928, Heck, like many young Germans, was raised with intense nationalism and eventually became a leader for the Hitler Youth. A devoted follower of Hitler, Heck's views began to turn when, having been captured by the U.S. and French armies, he was released in order to attend the Nuremburg trials. What he found there revealed to him the inhumane cruelty of the party to which he had given himself. In 1951 Heck immigrated to British Columbia, married his wife June, and remained reasonably well-settled until a heart attack left him without work. Now depressed and possessing free time, at the urging of his wife Heck began to chronicle his experience as Hitler's follower. From the publishing of his first book, A Child of Hitler, in 1985, and numerous other works and newpaper articles, Heck provided Americans with an insider's picture of Hitler's doings in Europe. He even contributed to a work, Parallel Journeys, with a woman named Helen Waterford who had lived through concentration camp, with whom he also spoke at many colleges. Heck delivered his testimony faithfully until his death of heart failure on April 11, 2005.