The Kleins became advocates of Holocaust education and human rights, dedicating most of their lives to promoting tolerance and community service.

According to Weissmann Klein's account, Moshe Merin, head of the local Jewish Council Judenrat, threw her back in her truck, saying "You are too young to die.

[7][8] When Kurt Klein first encountered Gerda Weissmann, who was one day short of her 21st birthday, she was white-haired, weighed 68 pounds, and dressed in rags.

[15] Weissmann Klein lived in Buffalo for several decades until her husband Kurt retired and they moved to Arizona in 1985 to be closer to their children and grandchildren.

The organization a national, 501(c)(3) non-profit that was established so she could give back in small measure to her adopted country for all of the privileges she has received since becoming a U.S. citizen.

As the Founder, Gerda Weissmann Klein, describes her passion for giving back through Citizenship Counts as such: “To perpetuate the miracle that is America, we must teach our children about its rich history as a nation of immigrants who chose this country and have given meaning to its ideals.

Citizenship Counts will engage today’s students in civics education, combined with active participation in a naturalization ceremony, to help ensure that the citizens of tomorrow will continue to foster tolerance, understanding, service to one another, and a greater appreciation for the privilege and responsibility of citizenship.” On February 15, 2011, President Barack Obama presented Weissmann Klein and 14 other recipients with the 2010 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the United States.

[17] At the ceremony in the East Room of the White House, President Obama announced, "This year's Medal of Freedom recipients reveal the best of who we are and who we aspire to be.

[18]President Obama then read a statement from Weissmann Klein: "I pray you never stand at any crossroads in your own lives, but if you do, if the darkness seems so total, if you think there is no way out, remember, never ever give up.

"[18] Weissmann Klein was selected to be the keynote speaker at the United Nations' first annual International Holocaust Remembrance Day in January 2006.

[19] She has spoken to school children in all 50 U.S. states and countless countries worldwide to spread her message of tolerance and hope, meeting with many world leaders and dignitaries such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Menachem Begin and Golda Meir.

[20] In 1997, President Bill Clinton appointed Weissmann Klein to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum's Governing Council.