In Tribute to Bettina Schaefer – Celebrated Journalist & Author

August 8, 2025

In Tribute to Bettina Schaefer – Celebrated Journalist & Author

29 January 1962 – 6 June 2025

Bettina was the author of Mikhail Gorbachev — How He Changed Our Lives. Through her stories of extraordinary lives—historical figures who lived their convictions to bring meaningful change—her work uplifted our shared humanity and showed how true transformation arises from the courage of individuals who inspire a collective awakening.



Bettina Schaefer, award-winning journalist and a remarkable woman devoted to the cause of humanity, has left us. Her legacy is evident in her literary works filled with insight and life.



As a journalist, she was authentic and had the rare gift of capturing the essence of extraordinary individuals—bringing to light the deeper sides of their characters and lives, far beyond the surface.



Bettina Schaefer held a strong conviction in humanity’s higher calling to make a meaningful difference in the world.

She also believed in the important role of women in the media. Yvonne de Andrés, Deputy Chair of BücherFrauen, a non-profit organization that offers a professional network for women in the publishing industry, wrote:



“Bettina’s journalistic endeavors were also marked by a keen focus on individuals who frequently remained in the background. She reported on life in East Germany following reunification, posed challenging questions during district council meetings and engaged with contemporary figures such as Götz George and Regine Hildebrandt with both sensitivity and deep understanding.”



Bettina grew up in a quaint village along the Baltic Sea coast of Schleswig-Holstein. She gained valuable experience working in Israel and in southern France, eventually achieving technical college entrance qualifications and completing a traineeship at a daily newspaper in Denmark. She later worked as an editor in Brandenburg, at Burda Verlag, and in Berlin for Gruner & Jahr.


After completing her postgraduate studies in journalism at the Free University of Berlin, she served as editor of an international journalism magazine in Hamburg. She later married the love of her life, Felis Schaefer.



Bettina Schaefer founded the Jetztzeit-Verlag publishing house following a profound meeting with Noah Flug, diplomat and Holocaust survivor himself, an advocate for survivors’ rights, which became the basis of her book Let's Talk about Auschwitz.



 Over the years, she published internationally acclaimed portraits of major historical figures such as Noah Flug, Władysław Bartoszewski, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, and Mikhail Gorbachev — all of whom embodied the highest of ethical principles: human dignity, compassion, personal freedom, rational reform, and the moral responsibility to help build a more just and peaceful world. Their leadership was recognized through peace and humanitarian awards worldwide.


In 2018, Bettina published Mensch Genscher — a tribute to former German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher. (“Mensch” is a Yiddish term meaning “person of integrity and honor”).



 The following year, Bettina travelled to Moscow to meet Mikhail Gorbachev and present the book. Their meeting was inspiring, as Gorbachev had made a significant contribution in Bettina’s work about Hans-Dietrich Genscher, a key figure in the peaceful reunification of Germany.



In her book, he speaks not only as a global leader but as a dear friend of Genscher, offering a personal narrative rather than policy details — a heartfelt tribute to their connection. He emphasized Genscher's crucial role in fostering German and European unification and his ability to seize the openings enabled by his own reforms of glasnost and perestroika.



On 30 August 2022, the world mourned the loss of Mr. Gorbachev. Just two days later, Bettina began work on Mikhail Gorbachev - How He Changed Our Lives (published 2023), which she released on the first anniversary of his passing as a meaningful tribute to the man who shaped history.



The book draws on interviews with twenty-one people from Gorbachev’s inner circle — including colleagues, companions, staff, and friends from Russia, Germany, the USA, Switzerland, and Sweden — capturing personal memories from the period 1985 to 2022, and highlighting his vision, humanity, and enduring legacy.

One year later, on 30 August 2023, at a memorial event at The Wall Museum in Berlin, Bettina unveiled her book in tribute to President Gorbachev and to commemorate the first anniversary of his passing. The biography includes individuals from the Green Cross International network, where she interviewed Alexander Likhotal, Diane Meyer Simon, and Tonia Moya, the author of this tribute, all featured in dedicated chapters.



The young girl on the book cover represents yet another remarkable Gorbachev story. Today Sonja Katharina Eichwede serves as a parliamentarian in the German Bundestag, while her father Wolfgang Eichwede, a professor of politics and contemporary history of Eastern Europe, is also featured in one of the chapters.



The official description of the book states:

“We learn how far ahead of his time Gorbachev was, and how much his humanity shaped his political thought and action. The traces left by the ‘human in the truest sense’ of the word are profound —that is, the greatest qualities that define what it truly means to be human. Gorbachev represented an opportunity and hope for a better world. The contributions in this book to commemorate Gorbachev help us recognize — even in dark times — how he changed all our lives for the better.”



On 6 June 2025, after a courageous battle with illness, Bettina Schaefer left us.



As Alexander Likhotal, former President of Green Cross International, said, “Bettina was an exceptional human being, and dedicated to her cause.”



Just one hour before her passing, Bettina was honored with the International Book Award 2025 for her biography of Gorbachev.



I will always remember Bettina as a luminous spirit — gracious, kind, and deeply intuitive. As a writer she possessed a remarkable intuition and unique ability to understand the deeper meanings and higher purposes. She valued authenticity and radiated a light for human enlightenment.



Our world has lost another true “Mensch”.



Bettina’s legacy will endure. Her work will continue inspiring us, shining a light on those who strive to uplift humankind. Her legacy reminds us that even in the most trying of times, it is our shared humanity that can redeem us and illuminate this world from darkness.



— Tonia Moya



Photos: Courtesy of Felix Schaefer

To order the book Mikhail Gorbachev — How He Changed Our Lives (available in German and English), please visit the Jetztzeit-Verlag Publishing House:

https://www.jetztzeit-verlag.de/bestellung.html


 

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Selected Works by Bettina Schaefer


  • Mikhail Gorbachev — How He Changed Our Lives (2023, English edition 2025)


  • Mensch Genscher (2018)


  • Walczyć o wolność, żyć niezależnie. Wspomnienia o Władysławie Bartoszewskim (2017)


  • Fighting for Freedom – Living Independently / Memories of Władysław Bartoszewski (2017, expanded edition 2022)


  • After the Holocaust: In Spite of Everything, I Remain an Optimist – Remembering Noah Flug (2015)


  • I Remain an Optimist, Despite Everything – Memories of Noah Flug (2014)


  • After the Earthquake: Heroes Are Those Who Stay. As a Nurse in a Crisis Area (2011)


  • Let’s Talk About Auschwitz. Memorial – Museum – Cemetery: Encounters with the Auschwitz World Heritage Site (2009)


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Awards:


  • International Book Award 2025 for Mikhail Gorbachev — How He Changed Our Lives


  • Gold Medal (Europe: Best Regional Non-Fiction), IPPY Awards 2017, New York, for Fighting for Freedom – Living Independently / Memories of Władysław Bartoszewski


  • Book Excellence Awards 2016, Toronto, for After the Holocaust: In Spite of Everything, I Remain an Optimist – Remembering Noah Flug


  • USA Best Book Awards 2015, Los Angeles, for After the Holocaust: In Spite of Everything, I Remain an Optimist – Remembering Noah Flug


  • International Book Awards 2015, Los Angeles, for After the Holocaust: In Spite of Everything, I Remain an Optimist – Remembering Noah Flug


 

 
 

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Condolences from the Gorbachev Foundation
        
 

25 June 2025


 

Dear Mr. Schaefer,

We are deeply saddened by the passing of Bettina Schaefer. Please accept our sincere condolences.

Bettina’s contribution to spreading the knowledge of Mikhail Gorbachev’s role in world history was indispensable and is deeply appreciated by all of us at the Gorbachev Foundation.

We also note her intense cooperation with our colleague Karen Karagezian, who passed away in February.

We are sure that their efforts will be continued.


 

Sincerely,

The Gorbachev Foundation


 

___________________
 
 

Courtesy of Felix Schaefer

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