Hear My Story: Yvonne and Eric Boltz

“A lot of people who go through traumatic experiences, not all, but they become hyper-empathetic. And that definitely happened to me.” “A lot of people who go through traumatic experiences, not all, but they become hyper-empathetic. And that definitely happened to me.” -Eric Boltz, Upstander Award winner

“One of the losses that we had when his accident happened, is that we spend so much time cooking together. And you know, when you think about it, creating a meal together, sharing a meal together, such a fundamental human activity, such a fundamental activity of connection and belonging, and that was taken away from us.” -Yvonne Boltz, Upstander Award winner

Yvonne and Eric Boltz know there are times in life where there’s a distinct before and after. They know because they went through one. Eric was a competitive cyclist who was planning an early retirement with his wife, Yvonne. One accident altered the trajectory of their plans. In 2015, Eric was struck by a car while cycling. He was left paralyzed from the chest down. Rather than allow their world to shrink, Yvonne & Eric made space for change. They sold their house when they realized it would be too difficult to retrofit it for the wheelchair access they needed. Then they bought 11 acres of property that has become Boltz to Nutz Farm – a haven and refuge for people living with physical disabilities. They say, “Visitors can explore life after injury in a supportive, hopeful environment.” The farm has adaptive kitchens, accessible gardens, and a home built to welcome all kinds of visitors. The goal is to make living with any disability less isolating and more empowering. For this work, they were honored in 2025 with the Anna Ornstein Award for Perseverance. Dr. Ornstein was a Holocaust survivor who devoted her life after liberation to the mental health of others who had experienced trauma. In this episode of Hear My Story, Yvonne & Eric share how they adapted to a life they never expected and how, through their own experience of loss and change, they are creating a more hopeful future for themselves and others.

This episode is part of the Cynthia & Harold Guttman Family Center for Storytelling. Subscribe here  ttps://www.youtube.com/@holocaustandhumanity

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