Irene Rogers was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1935. During the war, her family attempted to escape German occupation to Ukraine. From Ukraine, she left to Andijan, Uzbekistan. Her parents and little sister died from diseased during their escape. With the help of her older sister, Irene was able to survive. In Uzbekistan, she was taken into an orphanage, staying in orphanages when she later returned to Poland. After the war, she moved to Israel and later New York before moving to the Chicago area. She married her husband, Gerald, and had four children.