Look and Listen

Biography

Ronny Herman, born and raised in the Dutch East Indies, survived four years in Japanese concentration camps with her mother Netty and her little sister Paula during World War II on the island of Java. After the war a degree in English literature from Leiden University in the Netherlands and an impromptu wedding became the basis for a happy and exciting life. Ronny and her husband Mike immigrated to the United States with their three children and their dog Roy in 1972 and settled in Pasadena, California, where she worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada-Flintridge for a NASA contractor. After further training and education Ronny fulfilled a dream and worked as a fashion model and commercial actress in the greater Los Angeles area. For six years she served as a patient-care Hospice volunteer for Verdugo Hills Hospice and was moderator of her church. When the children had flown the coop, Mike and Ronny moved to the Big Island of Hawai’i. Almost twelve years in Hilo provided an opportunity for her to learn the art of dancing hula and perform as a hula dancer on many occasions. For six years she served as secretary to the Board of Hospice of Hilo. Swimming and snorkeling in the warm Hawaiian ocean became her passion. In the mean time she worked on her first book, In the Shadow of the Sun, the story of her survival of four years in Japanese concentration camps on Java with her mother and little sister during WWII. Based on her mother’s journal it provided valuable historical details of life in civilian camps for women and children under Japanese oppression. It was published in 1992 and had a good run. Ronny's second book, Rising from the Shadow of the Sun, A Story of Love, Survival and Joy, a sequel and personal memoir was published in March 2011 by Booklocker.com. Currently residing in Prescott, Arizona, Ronny is a member of the Professional Writers of Prescott (PWP) and the Society of Southwestern Authors (SSA). URL: http://www.ronnyhermandejong.com

Inspiration

When my first book, In the Shadow of the Sun, based on my mother's journal and published in 1992, was out of print, but people kept asking me for more copies, I realized that the subject of women's suffering in Japanese concentration camps during WWII in the Pacific was unknown to many. People in general know a lot about WWII in Europe, the Holocaust, and about the military war effort in the Pacific, but virtually nothing about the civilian camps for men, women and children and the cruel treatment of the prisoners by the Japanese Imperial Army in Southeast Asia. When I found out about the NARA Files, the top secret Japanese War Crimes Files declassified in the year 2000, I knew I had to re-tell the story and add this valuable information for the whole world to know. The 1942 liquidation plan of the Japanese Ministry of War was stated in Exhibit O: Death for all prisoners of war in all camps in occupied Southeast Asia, to commence in September of 1945. That meant my life was saved by the bombs! I herewith thank all the veterans and deceased military who fought courageously and gave their lives for the rescue we so desperately kept hoping and praying for. Rising from the Shadow of the Sun, an autobiographical historical memoir, if I may call it that, details my mother's love and our survival of the concentration camps followed by vignettes of the wonderful, joyous life that has befallen me since. At the time of its publication in March of 2011, my dear Mamma was 101 years old and very happy that our second book is on the market. She received the very first copy.