From Marion Tauschwitz
[At] the Frankfurt Bookfair I talked to Beate Klarsfeld and her husband Serge. What an amazing couple. I was attracted by a series of books with hundreds and hundreds of “documents concerning of the fate of Rumanian Jewry during the Holocaust” – more than 15 volumes full of documents. Volume V is on the Bukowina and Transnistria.
Further information at:
http://www.klarsfeldfoundation.org/
Regards,
Marion
My late Ukrainian paternal grandmother, Waselena (nee
PAVLOVIC/PAWLOWYCH/PAVLOVICI) BRESCIUC /BRESCHUK 1907 – 1980 conceived
my father in 1932 in a union with her true love who was a man other
than her husband at the time, Dimitrie Bresciuc / Breschuk. While she
was living in her home village of Cuciurul Mare (just SW of
Czernowitz) with her two eldest children, her husband was in Canada
preparing for the family’s emigration there. My father, conceived
during Dimitrie’s absence, was born in Cuciurul Mare in December 1932
and his mother emigrated solo to Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada in
1934. In 1936, my father and two older siblings were sent by
relatives to join her there. Dmitrie Bresciuc was killed in a train
accident in Canada in 1937. My father’s given birth name according to
his immigration documents is Mercea Emil BRESCIUC (BRESCHUK in
Canada).
I know very little about my bio grandfather. It was kept secret from
me until my mother clued me in with what little she knew in the late
70’s. My now deceased father never spoke of it to me. I have a vague
memory that his name could have been Anglicized as “Max Drake”, but I
am not sure how accurate that memory is. What I do know is that he
was described as “Jewish” and was “assassinated” after my grandmother
emigrated in ’34, but before the end of WWII. I suspect that his death
was the product of his Jewish faith. My sister has a vague
recollection of being told that he tried to pose as a German. Could
he have been found out and executed as a result? I don’t know how my
grandmother learned of his “assassination”.
I recently came into possession of 3 undated photos of this man. One
of them is of him posing with my grandmother. They appear to be
similar in age, he perhaps slightly older. The photos appear to have
been taken by Czernowitz (Cernauti) photographers. He may have been
from Czernovitz or Cuciurul Mare for her to have been acquainted with
him. I am willing to share these photos upon request as they are the
only substantive link to who he is. I don’t know if she brought the
photos over with her, or if there was some secretive overseas
communication and they were sent after the fact.
I am attempting to obtain my father’s birth certificate, though I
expect if it is to be found, Dimitrie Bresciuc’s name will be on it.
All other relatives who may have known this carefully guarded secret
are now deceased. I am hoping to identify this man by name or garner
some advice on how/where to do so myself.
Thanks in advance,
Vicki Bresciuc
Ms. Klinger sends us the front of a postcard. Two versions are posted below: The original and one that I tried to enhance the script on the left side of the card. I include the original in case someone has better tools than I for bringing up the faded script on the left. She would very much like the translation of the left side. Can you help?
Jerome
From Hedwig Brenner:
MY PICTURE FROM ISRAEL, ONE WEEK IN MY LIFE.
HISTORY: After WWI the world said never again. They created the League of Nation, what was done there was unimportant for, 20years later, we had WWII after which the United Nations was created. The only difference I can see between those two is that in 1948 they agreed to accept Israel as a State and thus have created the country which, whatever happens anywhere, the fault for all evil and wars have now a name and address – Revolution in Egypt – unrest in Syria – all this is caused by ISRAEL/the Jews who don’t agree to sign a peace treaty with the Palestinians which would solve all the Middle East and world problems. This is history.
A week, nearly 2 weeks ago / just my near past incredibly cruel pictures were transmitted from Syria more horrid than any ones before like thousands killed daily, a people killing, bombarding, their own but none shook the world so hard as the use of Gas!! We have heard of it before Iran/Iraq – father Assad used it to kill a part of the population he didn’t like but there was no media to report it on real time, not everyone had some camera in their pockets to show it all and there were hundreds of children slayed by GAS!!! Even Hitler didn’t make use of it when all was lost. Really heartbreaking – by the way if you want to know who started the war in Syria, ISRAEL of course!! Anyway, the French were the first to shout ” Bloody murder, unacceptable!” the Brits/Turks/Germans/USA/the Arab League made loud noises. In the Bible when God created the world between one day and the next it’s written ” There was evening there was morning and day 2, And so all these nations demanded action.
We in Israel prepared our gas masks -which by the way we have had for the past 2 years in our gas-shelter, mail delivered for 25 Shekel, but not all Israel is disciplined and arrived “just before Obama’s attack” last Thurs. Fri. latest Sunday. Meanwhile France thought they had shouted too loudly, got scared of their own voices, Cameron went to Parliament and was voted down and the USA had second thought and they still think. Turkey and the Arab League are waiting and I am too. Suppose Yom Kippur and Syria’s “great victory” over Israel, as they call it, is a nice day for another one??
So, I want to wish all our friends in Israel and all those living all over the world SHANA TOVA, Have a Happy, healthy year and do go on writing and reading.
anny
Below is a copy of my grandfather Rubin’s birth entry but need help to translate the “Anmerkung”.
Rubin was born in Zablatow in 1881. His mother was Bruche Singer. His father was Hersch Ohling. When Rubin married in 1908, he was still known as Rubin Singer. His name was changed to Rubin/Robert Oling, possibly in 1917.
I wonder if the “Anmerkung” relate to any additional family history that I can discover from the document.
I would be grateful if this segment of the document could be sent to all list members as someone might understand the language.
Thank you and very best wishes to all.
Jean Weightman
By way of Peter Elbau and Cornel Fleming:
Aus dem Rundbrief Nr. 113 der ARGE Feldpost Österreich-Ungarn, Autor: Horst Taitl
[From the circular letter No. 113 of the Working Field Post Austria-Hungary, Author: Horst Taitl]
Click on the link below:
Juden in der Armee
Jews in the Austro-Hungarian Army as seen through WWI military conrrespondence. — in German with photographs.
From Gad Rennert who writes:
Picture taken sometime in the 1990s of a gathering in Tel Aviv of classmates from 1938 class of Altea Duamna school in Czernowitz.
[We will be adding this photo to the Bukovina Get-togethers album -Jerome]
What I like about this job is you never know what’s going to surface. A woman wrote to me recently (Lara Diamond by name) telling of a an interesting old document she saw at a friend’s house and offered to photograph it. She thought the group would be interested, since it had a list of names attached and was from Novoselice/Novoselitsa. I agreed to have a look at it.
And this is what I present for you today: A 1904 document written in cursive Yiddish, written by the Rabbi of Novoselice: Yisrael Pesach son of Shalom Shachna Wetstein. This was the great great grandfather of Lara’s friend. The document apparently is the authorization for the sale of the town’s Chometz prior to Passover in 1904. There is a list of names at the end of the document, that most likely are the assigned buyers.
Lara says:
“These are signatures so some are difficult to read. I did my best. I suggest you put the last page on Viewmate to get an independent eye on these.
The bottom of the first page is signed by the town’s rabbi (and my friend’s gg grandfather) Yisrael Pesach son of Shalom Shachna Wetstein.
Witness at the top of the second page (first page of the two-sided document) is Avraham Chaim son of Baruch Shvartzer.
There are names in the paragraph up at the top of the last page:
Yisrael Pesach son of Shalom Shachna
Malka daughter of Rei Renish
Moshe son of Meir Veinberg
Zaan Shaya Dibes
Sara Frankfeld
Shabsei Shvartzberg
Then the rest of the page are signatures. (First word of each line is “Signed.”)
Eliyahu (illegible)
Yitzchok Reitman and (illegible) Beleson
Nachum Gruldinberg and also his brother? Pesach and (illegible) Reb Anshel
Leib son of Zev Plumilman (illegible) Yona Yilarstein
Pinchas Babia
Henech Shvartzberg
Chaim Feitia Kapilivike
Avraham Chaim Sheishesh? And Matisya Varman?
(Illegible) Sara Mecharkle
(illegible) Yaakov Yosef Yazlivt
Shlomo Vanblakis??
Yosef Kantirzshna
Mechael Veinberg
Hersh Leib Shich? and his brother Yisrael Shich
Yisrael Nicherberg
Tzvi Gezner”
And for those who can… here is the document, hand written in Yiddish, [Correction –The document is written in cursive Hebrew not Yiddish as originally posted –see commnets below] in pdf format:
Lara notes: “There are two documents. One is one page and the other is 2 pages (on 2 sides of the page).
The first picture is an overview of the one pager. Then I have 3 close ups of that page.
Then an overview of each of the sides of the other. Then I zeroed in on a list of names (actually signatures).”
Jerome notes:
According to the CIA, there are over 25 towns in today’s Ukraine with the name Novoselista. Is this ‘our’ Novoselista at 48°13’00″N : 26°17’00″E ? I ran this by Yosi Eshet who didn’t think so. Lara thinks it is, and I have no idea. Maybe someone will recognize a name and we’ll have the answer?
Jerome
Czernowitz going Hollywood.
Stars of fame for Sidi Tal and her husband Falik Pinkus. On top of the circles are the first names and on the bottom are the last. Looks like those stars are in front of the Philharmonic Hall (across from my childhood home) Sidi and Falik look just like I remember them. Only the stars are there, the pictures are for illustration purposes only.
Enjoy
Anna Kofner
