Holocaust survivor celebrates 100th birthday at family's salon in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA -- Tucked into the 1700 block of Sansom Street in Center City is a salon where you'll find three generations of women from the same family working together. One of whom just marked a very special milestone.

Every day at the International Salon you'll find Adel Goldshmidt.

"She helps us because she answered the phone, she opened the door, so it's nice. She talks to people," said her daughter, Emma Potievski-Sherby.

The day we visited was a special one.

"It's my birthday," said Goldshmidt.

A milestone birthday.

"She is 100 years old," said Potievski-Sherby.

Adel was born May 1st, 1925 in Kiev, Ukraine, which at that time was part of the Soviet Union. In 1941, Hitler's forces descended and Adele and her parents fled to Sibera.

"Very difficult, very difficult time for us," she said. "I no go to outside because I don't have it, no shoes, no clothes, nothing. It's very, very difficult."

They narrowly escaped the Babi Yar massacre, when more than 33,000 Jews were killed, including Adele's grandparents.

"My apartment from this Babi Yar, 10 minutes walking distance," she said.

Four years after Babi Yar, Adel returned to Kiev and became a registered nurse.

Then, she said she set her sights on America, bringing her family to Philadelphia by way of Italy and Austria.

"She went through all of it by herself," said Emma. "Went to Moscow, made the papers."

Adel said she wanted to come to America because she wanted her children to have freedom.

Her daughter, Emma, was 24 years old at the time. Emma's daughter and Adel's granddaughter, Natasha, was five.

"How she would force us to get up in the morning and say, we're going to be okay," said Natasha Vana.

Adele said she was met with more hardship in America, but persevered, eventually becoming a nurse here.

"To live what she lived through and be positive is a huge inspiration and should be inspirational for everyone," Natasha added.

Also inspiring is Adele's commitment to service. Thanks to her, 37 other families immigrated from Russia.

"She helped everyone with food, jobs, clothes, what to do, how to do it," said Emma.

"Everybody calls her mom. She is mom for everybody," added Natasha.

Adel said her secret to longevity is staying active.

"After retire, I did volunteer job. I not sit home, not one minute," she said.

She also has another secret to a long life.

"Love, love everybody, be good to everybody," she said.

"She includes everybody. It doesn't matter what color, what race, what religion - it doesn't matter. Everybody's people and everybody's family," Natasha said.