PRUZHANY
YZKOR BOOK
1958
Chapter
93
By Zalman Urievich
During WWI, when Cossacks invaded and destroyed Shereshev, Kartuz
Bereza, Malcz, Selcz and half Kamenietz, Pruzhany was able to avoid
destruction. Then a committee was created under the direction of GUERSHON
URINSKY (later he was Chairman of Popular Jewish School), who assumed the task
of saving people by using his astuteness.
In the streets where Cossacks were going to pass riding their horses,
they disposed little tables with lemonade, little breads and cigars, and as
soon as a Cossack appeared riding, they offered all this with a smile. The
Cossacks took the lemonade with surprise, ate the breads, smoked the cigars and
said thanks. They no longer dismounted, and continued their way. That's the way
Pruzhany was saved from being set on fire by the Cossacks.
During WWII more than one Jew thought that Pruzhany would avoid the
destiny of other little towns by having bright ideas, slyness and a "right
behavior" to the Germans.
Germans Arrive
Soviet army ran hurried and left adrift warehouses full of weapons and
food. German planes, meanwhile, started to bombard the airports, and Jewish
families had to run away from their homes. They ran to the houses around the
market. We had to shelter the first homeless. In my house that was on Kobrinska
street moved two families, ITSHE KLENITZKY, his wife ROCHTSHE and their
children, as well as her parents, the ROSICHOWSKY's.
In the dawn of June 22, appeared the first spy-plane that was flying
over the town, very low. The men from near houses gathered in our courtyard,
and through the cracks on the closed front door we saw the German army
marching. The darest men took the risk of getting out through the front door to
the street.
I walked down to the well behind FAITELEWITSH'S place, as if I was going
for some water. There were standing a few German soldiers washing their hands.
I made up my mind to stay by the well, and a German asked me if I was a
"yude". I assented, and they looked at each other. Another one asked
me if I was a worker, and if there were many Jewish workers in here. I said
that both my neighbor and myself were workers. They moved away from well so I
could take some water and then I went home.
Obviously all the neighbors were eager to listen my report about my
first meeting with the Germans. My tale calmed them down a little. They opened
the little gate and some men, a bit more secure, got out to the street. The
march of German army had no end. Close to stores, and YUDKOVSKY's wall, poles
received Germans with flowers in their hands.
The march of German army lasted three weeks. In the meantime German
soldiers rushed over the stores in which Russians had left some food. Jewish
and poles tried to take what they could too. German soldiers
"organized" the spoils near to ARKE SANE's house, on Kobrinska
street, where they put some barrels full of herring and sacks of vegetables and
flour. A petty officer ordered to make a line and he watched there wasn't any
plunders.
Another German officer asked for SHLOIMKE SAPHIRSHTEIN who was a friend
of him and they had met each other during WWI's German occupation. The German
said to SHLOIMKE: "Jews shouldn't be afraid of us the army, but when the
Gestapo comes, it'll all be very serious. Look for a chance, save yourself.
Runaway." This petty officer showed up no more.
During the march of German army, power was in gendarmeries hands. This,
which we shouldn't be afraid of, began to "catch" people "for
working" and take soviet weapons from the warehouses. They caught them in
the streets, drag down from their homes, and they missed no chance to beat them
and punish them. Some German soldiers started the plunder in Jewish homes.
When the march of German army was over, the Gestapo entered the town and
a civil police of poles appeared. Polish police firstly took revenge from those
Jewish who had collaborated with Bolsheviks. All of them were submitted to
Germans. Among the 18 Jewish arrested in that occasion, there were some who had
no relationship at all with Bolsheviks: SHIMON DOBES, ELIOHU LUIBOSHETZ, AARON
KAGANITZKY, VICHNE FRYDMAN, his son HERSCHEL and a daughter, ISAK GOLUBOITSH,
SELIG GEIER, YANKE LEVITZKY, YSASCHAR SHAPIRA and his brother OSHER, RIVKA
AVERBUCH and her daughter MENDL (MEGE) ABRAMOVITCH and Dr. SHRAIB.
With the Gestapo, hunger entered in Pruzhany. Peasants stopped bringing
their stuff and if any peasant showed up bringing anything to sale, she
wouldn't receive money but merchandise as a payment. In the meantime, people
were caught to work again. They sent Jews to serve German officials. They had
to cut firewood, clean the houses up and sweep the sidewalks. The officials
settled on the Christian area of town. The Jews who carried out the task of serving
Germans in that part of town met the peasants frequently and so began a silent
exchange trade. One could get food in exchange of a piece of material or
leather. We thought we could find a solution for hunger.
Very soon the Gestapo showed its intentions. Plunders to Jewish homes
increased. German soldiers found their partners, that's the Gestapo people, but
the strikes were not "organized" yet. Soon came the official strike.
The Gestapo forbad the jews to walk through the sidewalks on the contrary, they
had to walk in the streets beside the gutters. Every jew had to wear two yellow
patches, one on the chest and one on the back. This hard decree was imposed to
children too.
The Judenrat
Germans commanded the Jews to create a "Judenshtat". In the
beginning had to be just a small one composed by five members. Later they
demanded it to grow to 24 members. I didn't know for sure how was the Judenrat
composed and I dare not to say what was the aim of everyone to accept the task.
There were complaints to them, specially from youth who were dissatisfied, for
the Judenrat stopped the protest outbreaks again and again, and asked for
"order". People were suspicious of Judenrat members, because they
took care over all for themselves and their families, but they weren't blamed
of being traitors.
We think our Judenrat did its work well. Judenrats of Byalistok, Slonim,
Pinsk, Brisk and other towns sent its representatives to Pruzhany to take it as
a model.
When the Pruzhany Ghetto was annihilated, every member of the Judenrat
was sent to Auschwitz. 22 of the 24 members died; the other two, AVREML BRESKY
and ZAVL SEGEL saved their lives.
Ghetto
During July, Gestapo's commandant summoned the Judenrat team and
informed that a ghetto would be installed for the Jews of Pruzhany and from
that moment on, Pruzhany would become a part of Eastern Prussia, in 3rd Reich.
Although it seems odd, in the town was rumored that becoming into a part
of 3rd Reich was a good sign. Germans would give the 3rd Reich's Jews some rights.
The Judenrat received a ghetto's plan and a description of the way to fence it
in, the height and width the fence should have. Judenrat was to make that
fence.
The ghetto was installed on July 1st, 1941. All the Jews who lived
outside the ghetto had to move out from their houses to the ghetto area. Those
Christians who lived in the area where the ghetto was installing in, should
move out to the Christian part of town.
Homeless
It was rumored that both Pruzhany and the near towns would become into a
"Judenshtat" (Jewish state). Rumors seemed to be real, since from
Byalistok arrived transports of jews, introduced by their Judenrat, and ordered
by the Gestapo. All the way from Byalistok to Pruzhany Jews were cruelly beaten
and punished. Many arrived to Pruzhany punched and bleeding.
On the way to Bielovietz they gathered all the Jews from Gienavka,
Narewka and other near villages. They arrived walking to Pruzhany and Judenrat
had to add them to the lists.
From Kamenietz arrived some Jews, but since others didn't come along,
those few went back to their village.
Germans stopped sending new transports with Jews in.
We heard that, behind the town, Jews were expelled from Shereshev and
Pruzhany's Judenrat was ready to receive them, but Germans didn't allow them
in. Shereshev's Jews were expelled to Antopol and Drohitzin; only a part of
them would come into our ghetto.
It was necessary to give these homeless housing. Some were addressed in
the Christians empty houses, others in the "Batei Midrashim" (Jewish
religious studies academies) and others in Pruzhany's families homes. One had
to provide them with clothing, bed, shoes, blankets and food. All this had to
be done by the Judenrat, in an organized way.
Judenrat And Its Activities
Judenrat had to carry out everything the Germans asked for. Many times
they had not a clear idea of the task they had to execute. They had to bring to
the Germans a certain number of workers, to places previously arranged.
Judenrat decided who and where to go. The Germans imposed heavy taxes on Jews,
and Judenrat was to collect it among the rich of Pruzhany: gold, silver and
furs.
How to organize daily life in the ghetto? Here the Judenrat had to think
and plan, and always answer two questions at the same time: what will the
Germans say, and what will the Jews say?
Finances
The Judenrat got a payment for those workers requested by the Germans,
but it wasn't enough. From time to time it was necessary to collect a tax from
Pruzhany's Jews. Judenrat also used several
illegal ways such as contraband to increase its incomes.
Workshops In The Ghetto
Workshops in the ghetto solved many problems. Through them new jobs for
homeless were created. In these workshops they could make furniture and sew
their own clothes. There were carpentry, tailoring and shoemaking workshops,
and a factory as well. Heading this factory were its former owners, YERUCHAM
GOLDBERG and NISN LEVKOVITSH. The few bakeries were under the charge of
Judenrat Supplies Commission. The workshops number increased. Clothes and boots
were good rudiments to bribe the Germans. The work itself was a means of bribe.
The Germans brought leather and wood, and Jews made shoes and furniture, and
when some material remained, they used it for homeless.
To organize the workshops didn't take long. Both work tools and
materials were brought by the Judenrat through "nationalizations". In
Pruzhany was easy to find out who -and where- could have the materials. Then
the Judenrat sent its people and Jews had to give it away.
Supply Commission
People of Pruzhany didn't suffer from hunger in the ghetto. Not everyone
was able to feed the same way; it was up to the way each one managed to.
Judenrat was responsible to supply the workers they sent to work outside the
ghetto, the workshop workers and all its employees. It supplied the ills at
hospital and children at kindergarten. It opened free cookeries and dining
places for homeless. Judenrat minded, and got to enter more food than what it
was officially allowed to. The official portion was 1/8 "fund" of
bread a day, but the real portion that Judenrat distributed was bigger. Where
did the Judenrat get it from? Firstly, those Jews who were able to provide
themselves with food didn't turn to Judenrat shares, but this wasn't enough.
Only the Judenrat received the contraband food stuff. The Jews working outside
the ghetto were in touch with Christians, and could buy their stuff; Christian
shoemakers frequently got a special permission to get in the ghetto and asked
to Jewish shoemakers to make their customer's orders. The same happened with
Jewish tailors. In this transit from and to the ghetto, stuff was smuggled.
They had to bribe the gate's guards, of course. Sometimes the Judenrat
got to bribe the very Mayor, and he obtained from peasants an extra-amount of
stuff for the ghetto.
Ghetto's garbage was emptied out outskirts the town, and garbage men
used to put into the garbage baskets smuggled products for the ghetto.
The Germans didn't provide to Judenrat the bread but the flour, and
mills were outside the ghetto. In the way from and to the mills, the chance was
given to buy some stuff to peasants and urban Christian population, and then,
get it in "legally" with the flour.
The firemen brigade for the whole Pruzhany was located inside the
ghetto. Jewish firemen had to extinguish fires in the non-Jewish area too. On
their way back, they brought in their cars stuff for the ghetto.
The officially-assigned quantities were obtained this way: the Mayor
gave the Judenrat an application form. At the Supply Center the German and
Polish officers were bribed, so they increased the delivered food stuff. The
same happened with mills. In these, officers were bribed in order to get
extra-flour.
With the aim of supply the need
of the few German civilian, the German ARANDAT opened a store in ELIOHU
BIRENBOIM's house. The Judenrat got to contact this ARANDAT and through it,
bought several stuff for the ghetto.
Once the stuff was distributed among the workers and poor people, if some
stuff remained, Judenrat used to sale it in the few stores they opened. For
Germans this meant that Judenrat was receiving a payment for the
officially-assigned rations.
Heating
Judenrat got from Germans a permission to extract thistles in SEMENTHI's
and KUPLIN's fields. They were also allowed to finish cutting in TSHACHTSHE's
wood the "kortshes" (remains of trees after they had been cut by
nazis) The Judenrat sent its people and with the help of some carts and horses
they got to fuel-material into the ghetto.
The Hospital
The Judenrat had the right to send its doctors to poor homes, even if
this people weren't able to pay, but everyone without exception received the
same medical assistance than those who could pay for it. Only there it was possible
to get medicines. There weren't pharmacies in the ghetto, and the hospital
staff used illegally-obtained drugs, for which they paid very expensive prices.
The hospital was in the building of the former polish high school, and its
director was Professor SHTRAICHER, a Jew from Galitzia, married to CIVIA
ROSICHOVSKY from Pruzhany. He had no connection with medicine, and he was
called "professor" because he had been a teacher in the Hebrew High
School before the war. SHTRAICHER was directing a group of doctors and nurses
who achieved wonders.
There was a special case which I allow myself to tell. According to what
I heard from hospital staff, there weren't many deceases in Pruzhany. There
weren't corps out in the streets, but certainly there was shortage of money in
the Ghetto, and Pruzhany wasn't able to avoid epidemic. This happened when the
other near Ghettos had been already annihilated, and Pruzhany was the last
community in the area to survive.
At hospital some people got ill and doctors diagnosed typhus; this had
to be kept as a secret for Germans, 'cause if this got to their ears, it could
be a motive to liquidate the Ghetto. The medical staff quickly designated a
special place to isolate the typhus patients. They placated the epidemic with
quick and energic assistance. Not even the jews in the Ghetto noticed what
happened there, thus a panic experience was prevented.
Number Of Jews In The Ghetto
Germans constantly demanded to know the number of Jews living on the
ghetto. When a baby was born, the Judenrat added a ration of food, and Germans
lessened one ration for each dead Jew. The Judenrat had to update the
population's list so it created a special position leaded by FAIVL GOLDFAIN.
This position was on representation of Chevra Kadisha (Jewish organization in
charge of funerals). Germans knew that when a Jew was shot, he would be brought
to Chevra Kadisha for his burial.
At first, when the Ghetto area was bigger, they used the new cemetery.
When Germans limited the space, the old cemetery, located in the center of
town, had to be used.
Our Cultural Activity
The Judenrat supported the kindergarten that was placed in Goldberg's
house, down in Kobrinska street. VELE TZAREF-YANOVITSH, wife of Judenrat's
chairman, and teacher SHEIN-PINSKY, secretary's sister, managed the
kindergarten.
The greater part of children attending at kindergarten were homeless
children, given that they had some food there. Those Jews who were able to send
their children to private schools, had personal teachers in private houses.
The houses of Jewish Religious Studies were used to host the homeless.
The religious Jews used to pray in private places. The oldest and homeless Jews
organized a sort of religious study place on ARON DAVID SHRAIBMAN's house. The
Kamenietz rabbi taught the Bible there.
Lays and youth used to meet, every time in a different place, in order
to have political arguments, criticize the Judenrat, and often express their
disapproval for stopping their aims of fight. In these meeting an idea was born
to create a fight organization, to dig underground shelters (bunkers) and run
away to the forest. All the people from different political parties attended to
these meetings. There weren't any other party meetings in the Ghetto
.
"Leimanke"
Pruzhany Jews thought their ghetto would be different than others. News
arrived very often about "selections" and "actions" in the
surrounding villages, but Pruzhany only suffered, until that moment, the first
18 shootings. Certainly Germans shot some Jews a day, but "only"
those who tried to escape from the Ghetto.
We had to get used to be punched, tortured, starved and humiliated, but
not only Pruzhany inhabitants did, but inhabitants from the near villages got
to believe in our "luck". Slonim Jews, for instance, looked for the
chance to enter our Ghetto. Those who had relatives in Pruzhany begged for help
to make their plans come true. Pruzhany jews helped them out.
On a house beside the Seminar, worked a telephone head office, that gave
services from Pruzhany to Baranovitz. This office was leaded by the German
LEIMAN or "Leimanke" like we used to call him. Every day he came to
the Ghetto with his dog, beat some Jews and incited his dogs to attack them; he
was satisfied only when he saw jewish blood spread. One day he intended to
damage and humiliate our Rabbi. He went on rabbi's house while he was praying,
dragged him along the streets to the outskirts. On the way he ordered the Rabbi
to dance. ZAVL SEGEL (Judenrat's chairman) and NIOMKE GOLDBERG went to see
Leimanke and promised to give him boots, as well as a considerable amount, in
exchange of leaving the rabbi in peace. They got it.
From this meeting with Leimanke, the Jews learned that
"heroes" like him can be bought with bribe. He stopped going to the
Ghetto, but this didn't refrained his helpers from visiting us from time to
time, as well as beating us. They wanted to be "partners" in the
"commercial transactions" that he thought some Jews made.
In Slonim there were tanneries that supplied the shoemakers with leather
(there were no tanneries in Pruzhany). LEIMAN compromised himself to provide
cars and drivers, so the Jews would be able to smuggle Slonim's leather to
Pruzhany; Leiman requested a high price. During those years the Jews tried to bring
to Pruzhany not only leather but Jews from Slonim too. Many Jews couldn't enter
Pruzhany but the belief grew that any enemy could become into a friend through
bribing.
Severe sanctions
The Judenrat tried very hard to revoke German sanctions. Some could be
annulled "in situ" by bribing. This was the task of ZAVL SEGEL, who
was the representative before the Gestapo. When the Judenrat heard rumors about
a big strike being prepared against Pruzhany, secretary ELIEZER SHAYN, a Jew
from Lodz after a long way arrived in Pruzhany and got to escape miraculously
from the Ghetto and entered the German Gestapo's head office. He didn't come
with empty hands. For a good price the Bialystok's Gestapo conceded him only...
to diminish the area giving place to bigger narrowness.
Court And Police
The Jewish police had no bad reputation in the Ghetto. Many people from
different social stratum belonged to the Police. Each one felt
"useful" doing anything to save his life. Specially homeless joined.
Judenrat made sure their behavior was right. One day, a homeless from
Bialystok, after escaping from the Gestapo, got to hide a ring. A Jewish
policeman stole it from him. When the Judenrat knew, they expelled this man
from Police.
The duties of the Jewish police were to keep the order in the Ghetto and
to help collecting taxes for the Judenrat.
The Police supervised those cases of Jews who "went too far"
on smuggling (butchers tried to enter livestock in the ghetto and other crimes)
The person under arrest was taken to the headquarters in NOTE MOSTOVLANSKY's
place, on Dombrowska street. There he would be hold up and liberated after a
few hours.
The Ghetto's judge was VELVEL SHRAIBMAN. There were two kinds of crime.
One were those that could make the Germans get even angrier. The other, those
related to some Jews or against the whole community. An example of the first
kind was not to pay the contributions or to go too far on smuggling. The second
one was the inhuman: someone refused to give some milk to a homeless child,
someone didn't allow a homeless to stay on his house.
The court also mediated on conflicts between Jews, since people lived in
poverty and often there were aggression to each other, punches included.
Trials were public. Judge VELVEL SHRAIBMAN spoke to the culprits, and
demanded social responsibility from them. His speeches were addressed not only
to the offenders, but to all the Jews of the Ghetto, and he prevented them from
a moral degrade.
The biggest sentence ever imposed by the court was to spend a night in
jail. VELVEL SHRAIBMAN's speech and shame feeling used to work as a punishment.
The Judenrat displayed "abnormal" punishments as well. If an offender
relapsed after receiving the "normal" punishment, the Judenrat would
send him to a German work camp in Bielovietz; thus the Judenrat was able to
send to this camp as many workers as the Germans requested.
One day Dr.BORNSHTEIN (Field Marshall AVROM SELETZKY's son-in-law)
refused to visit an ill man for free. At the same time Germans demanded
Pruzhany to present a doctor for Bielsk Ghetto. The court punished Dr.
BORNSHTEIN sending him to Bielsk. This meant separating him from his family
that stood in Pruzhany.
The Judenrat tried to bribe Germans, demanded the sanctions and tried to
save those who were in danger. This wasn't accomplished all the times, because
the Judenrat had to answer the German demands. One day the Gestapo found out
that some Jews from other cities had entered in Pruzhany Ghetto, and they told
this to the corresponding Gestapo. This asked for the Jews surrender, otherwise
they would punish whoever they wanted, and the whole Ghetto would suffer the
consequences. The Judenrat obeyed the request and the "intruders"
were shot.
The Rebels
Certainly the older Jews, unprotected and mistreated, hoped that the
Judenrat would help them. The youth didn't believe in Judenrat's strength, and
were only waiting for the "right time" to fight against the Germans.
Some believed there wasn't any hope and it was all lost. Meanwhile, this same
feelings spread among the intellectuals of Pruzhany. A German announcement
came, ordering everyone to get a blanket and a meal for two days ready.
A group met in VELVEL
SHRAIBMAN's place (on Kobrinska street, formerly YOSEL POMERANIETZ's) on
Ghetto's border, and decided to kill themselves. This happened in the night,
when nobody was supposed to walk by. The morning after when people came to
VELVEL's house as usual, in order to receive information, they found the door
was locked and smoke was coming from inside. When they opened the door, came in
and saw a horrible view: on a smoky scene, lying on the floor, there were
unconscious people, among them VELVEL SHRAIBMAN. They were able to save
everyone excepting one, named YLENETZKY (ZELIG GOLDFAIN's son-in-law) who died.
The suicides had drunk poison, lit the logs in the chimney, blocked the
windows, and this asphyxiated them. They thought this way they'd free
themselves from Germans for ever.
The news about the collective suicide caused a big general shock. Many
Jews complained saying to the intellectuals they had no right to give up nor
become disillusioned, and they must be an example for the others, and not to
break Jew's moral in Ghetto. Many youth groups answered the German announcement
with noisy shouts in front of the fences, they tried to run away and fought
against the guards. Many of them perished, and only a few reached the forest.
The Judenrat informed the Jews about its energetic protest against the
Germans, in order to annul the severe sanction on the blanket and two-days meal
matter. The sanction was quashed.
One time the Mayor informed about a census taking place in the Ghetto.
At 7 AM the Jews had to make a line, with the children in their arms, so the
Germans could count them one by one. Not everyone attended at the first call.
The youth didn't believe in German promises, and they refused to being counted.
The Judenrat members made a great effort to convince the youth not to resist,
assuring that, if everyone obeyed, it would be good enough for Germans. But, if
a majority group didn't obey, the Judenrat wouldn't assume responsibility for
what happened. The youth, finally, agreed.
From 7am to 3pm in the open air and a chilling cold, the Jews of
Pruzhany were in line until the Germans counted every "head",
controlling the lists given by the Judenrat, which in this case coincided, and
people just got a big fright.
The sense of protest among young people didn't vanished. In the secret
meetings they began to talk clearly: there is no other way but resistance.
Every time news arrived about a near Ghetto being annihilated the certainties
that Judenrat gave lost strength. Only remained to decide when to start the
fight and how to achieve it.
Underground Radio
HERSHEL MOROVSKY, one of the leaders of the carpentry workshops, found
on the attic a radio. He spoke to MOISHE LATZKY (wood trader who was also
related to workshops) and they both decided to set up an underground radio in
the very carpentry workshop, where the Tarbut school was placed. They told so
to the Judenrat Presidium and got its agreement. They settled the radio by
loosening a plank from the stairs, so in case somebody found it up, they could
replace the plank and pretend they were fixing the stairway. The youth, with
this radio, were hopeful to know what was happening in the world, and then
decide when was the right time to start fighting.
Guns
In the beginning, it wasn't clear what was the function of the
"Fight Organization". There were proposals like these: to set the
Ghetto on fire in order to throw the Germans into panic, so meanwhile the jews
would be able to escape. But, where to escape? Others said that burning the
Ghetto would force them to run away to the forest anyway. Certainly, some
people did escape almost every day. Many of them were shot by the Germans, but
some reached their aim. The forest was attractive. The Judenrat knew about
people's intention and prevented the danger lying ahead. In the underground meetings, people talked
all the time about who must escape, whether it was everyone or just the young
people. One thing was clear: without guns, they couldn't run to the forest.
In the second half of 1942, the youth began to organize on underground
groups of 20-25 people. They began to collect guns. Many hundreds of Jews
worked daily unloading guns that Russians had left on the city airfields and
the quarters near to Lineve. The Jews began to mind collecting guns. Only revolvers and rifle metallic pieces
could be entered smuggled in the
Ghetto. Very late in the night on the lawyer SHRAIBMAN's basement they made the
rifle wooden pieces.
This task was leaded by VELVEL SHRAIBMAN, who firstly tried to kill
himself and later, besides being the Judenrat vicechairma, took the
responsibility of being a judge and kept on having a moral behaviour on the
Ghetto. Now he accepted being the leader of the guns warehouses for the Fight
Organization. A big part of the youth got some guns by themselves. It began to
be rumored that jews from the near villages were hidden on the woods too. The
youth of Pruzhany was getting ready for the removal to the forest.
Bunkers (Defense Undergrounds)
In the same times when the fight organizations were founded, some people
started to dig defense undergrounds. This was made in a primitive way, like a
water-well digging. Food, fuel and matches were stored up in there. Others used
to bring bed sheets. This basements were clandestinely built even without their
families knowing. We'll never know how many of these basements there were. I
heard only about a few of them:
I know there were many bunkers of other people who were hidden, but only
survived the following people: YABLUM and his son EPHRAIM, SHEVA ROGOVITSH and
her daughter, and TZIRE AIZNER who finally got to join the partisans.
Partisans
The decision of going to the forest wasn't easy to accomplish. The
Judenrat did its best in order to avoid any mass action. Its reasons were: 1) a
massive action would close the negotiation way with Germans, and they wouldn't
have any chance to reject the sanctions nor save somebody in the Ghetto; 2) the
Judenrat members were personally responsible before the German power regarding
to the behavior of Pruzhany Jews, and they would be the first to pay with their
lives an eventual mass rebellion.
MEIER KARASHINSKY, leader of a group of workers who worked in the woods
uprooting the remaining of cut trees, found some soviet partisans. These
proposed KARASHINSKY to join some of his men to the partisans. KARASHINSKY
answered: we cannot risk the Judenrat, that's responsible for us. Despite in
the work group were members of the Fight Organization, none of them stood in
the forest. The youth weren't truly decided to move to the forest. They moved
in small groups. The first was MOTEL UNTERSHUL (an orphan who was brought up in
Pruzhany's orphanage) and his wife. He died in the forest; his wife lives now
in New York. He was an example and others did the same.
Little by little the Jews of
Pruzhany moved together with the soviet partisans. In the Ghetto people knew there were Pruzhany's partisans in the
forest, and that encouraged many people's spirit to follow the same way. Men
decided to bring their older children with them, but they needed to have proper
clothing, food, and money for guards bribing; in order to get this they had to
address to the Judenrat. They had to be very careful and talk only to some of
its members. I don't know if the whole committee knew about this issue, but the
truth is, some of the members who were in touch with the partisans, helped us
out. The youth took the Judenrat's advice of going to the forest one by one or
in small groups. The youth broke this outline in the final hour, when the
Ghetto's annihilation began.
During the four days that annihilation went on for (January 28, 29, 30
and 31, 1943), a few hundreds of Jews got to reach the forest after bribing the
guards; this was possible as long as the polish guard was there. The exit point
was placed on Shereshev street. When the way out was impossible, violence was
used. The incipient partisans started the fight with the guards on Pecevitz street,
beside SELENITZKY's house, and beside the House of Religious Studies on Reske
street, and other places. Many of them perished in front of the Ghetto's gates,
but a group succeeded to reach the forest.
At first they just wandered up and down, and they were exposed to being
caught by the Germans or reported by peasants. Finally, they met the soviet
partisans who accepted them after big efforts. Many of them were poorly armed,
others brought their families with them, but even considering how difficult was
to live in the forest, the outcome was 2/3 of the Pruzhany's partisans
survived.
Annihilation
On January 27, at 7:45 PM, the Chief of the Gestapo suddenly turned up
at Judenrat offices. Just in that moment a delegation of partisans from the
forest was there, who had gone in order to ask the Judenrat for help. The
representative was BERL SEGEL and a Jew from Byalistok (I don't remember his
name). They were sitting in one of the rooms with rifles in their hands. As
soon as the Chief turned up, both partisans escaped and reached the forest. The
bullets fired by the Chief hit the Jewish guard of the Judenrat, who died. The
Judenrat members DAVID ROSICHOVSKY, ZISKE SPECTOR and others, were hurt. The
Gestapo Chief demanded the partisans surrender before 12 PM. This was
impossible to achieve, since thr Judenrat had no direct contact with them, and
there was no time to send somebody to bring them. At 11 PM a new Gestapo
release arrived: don't search those who escaped; wait for a new announcement.
This announcement arrived at once, and it brought the fate of Pruzhany's Jews:
the Ghetto would be annihilated.
On January 28 the first transportation with 2500 Jews was sent, and it
covered all those who lived on Dombrowsky street (Seltzer St.), and the near
lanes. The Jews of Pruzhany were sent to a work camp on "Shlezia".
The order came from the Head commando of the General Gestapo in Byalistok.
On January 28, 6 PM, the market area filled with the peasant sledges and
Germans started to fill them with Jews.
The Judenrat representatives
still tried to negotiate with the Gestapo. One of them, the Supplies director,
"assured" to the Judenrat that Jews would be moved only to work, and
just the men. Women and children would get proper "houses" to live
in. The Judenrat members clung to this "asseveration", informed the
Jews, and these believed because they still had some hopes of being moved in a
different way, for being thought as German citizens of the Third Reich.
The blame for Ghetto's annihilation was put on the partisans. People
thought the annihilation wouldn't had happened otherwise.
When the harmful annihilation of Pruzhany's Jews began, the Judenrat
Chairman, ITZHAK YANOVITSH, assembled the Jews and told them he was convinced
the Gestapo was deceiving them and not moving the Jews to work camps. Every one
is free to do what he thinks is the best. Until this moment everyone avoided to
act independently for the community's sake; from now on, each one is free to
act.
Transportation
Jews
were allowed to take with them only the stuff that fits into a bag they had to
carry on their backs. When a whole family had the use of a sledge, they tried
to pack all their bed linen. After a journey of 12 km., they arrived in a
station called ARANTSHITZE. The Germans and Ukrainian police took their bed
linen away.
On
our way to ARANTHITZE, in my transportation that was the last one, people tried
to escape from several sledges; they were shot but a few got to escape.
In
ARANTSHITZE people were bundled into carriages. In each carriage there was room
for 30 people, but they put 120. On the first three transportations, men and
women traveled separately. On the last transportation on January 31, 1943, I
traveled with my wife, our two kids and our relatives. We people from Pruzhany
were all transferred to Auschwitz. Our train journey lasted 72 hours.
The
Way
The
room was narrow. Hunger and thirst mortified us. We were all seized by a
strange silence; even children were quiet and dared not to ask for water. Only
when they finally fainted and their little heads fell down, their mothers
moistened their lips with their own urine. During this 3-days journey, many of
our people slowly faded like a candle. Adults and children died on the way.
After the 3 days journey, we arrived along with the deceased and the half-dead,
in the platform of Birkenau.
At
Birkenau
When
getting off of the carriages, we were received with punches and, humiliation
and insults. Close to us were the armed guards of the SS. We began to be
separated. Men apart from women and children. Men were asked about their job.
Later they ordered men and young women to get out and they created another
group. Meanwhile the "Canadian Commando" (a work group) was arriving
and they started to clean our wagons. They pulled the dead out, and the half
dead too, together with our bags. Around the dead mound a group of scared
children gathered. Later we heard that some members of the Canadian Commando,
knowing the secrets of the camp, kept away the children from their mother's arms
in order to send them to the workers group. I know one of these mothers who
survived. After the liberation she recognized one of the members of the
Canadian Commando who took her son away from her arms, and she was petrified
when she saw him.
Apart
from the group of "suitable for work", everyone else were taken to
the crematorium. Women and children were taken on loading trucks. Those men who
didn't seem to be suitable for working went walking.
Of
the 10.000 Jews from Pruzhany, about 2000 people were appointed to work, among
them 1200 men and 800 women. We remained without our families.
My
wife YENTE URIEVITSH (from URINSKY house), my 6 years old little daughter
FRUMSHELE and my 16 months little daughter MANIELE were sent to the crematoria.
When my brother was asked about his job, he was very nervous and he answered he
was a shoemaker helper. This wasn't enough to stay alive. He was sent to the
crematoria too. There were also sent my sister, her husband and two kids, my
two brothers with their wives and children, my sister in law and her daughter,
my uncles, aunts, cousins, my wife's sister and mother.
We,
the "chosen", remained 6 weeks in Birkenau. We lived in four huts,
numbers 16, 17, 18 and 19. We slept on planks, in a cave where there was room
for three, we were about 8-10 people. We had no water to wash ourselves. We
used to get a few potatoes a day, and sometimes not even so, 3/4 liters of
muddy water they called coffee. During those 6 weeks a big part of our
"able to work" died from hunger, punches and tortures. After 1 week,
they needed 4 huts no more for us, since only two were enough. The survivors
from huts 16 and 17 joined in the first, and those from huts 18 and 19 in the
other.
After
6 weeks, most of the Pruzhany Jews were moved to Auschwitz, 1 and 1/2 kilometer
from Birkenau. A small group stood in Birkenau.
At
Auschwitz
It's
hard to believe today, but then, when we were brought to Auschwitz after 6
weeks in Birkenau, we thought we'd be better on Auschwitz. We were not blinded
by the swimming pool in the center of the camp. We knew the Germans tried to
deceive us by that weird luxury. We were hardly better on the three-floor
matting beds. We rushed forward the portions consisting of 250 gr. of bread a
day, a little piece of margarine, a little bit of "wurtsh" (German
salami) and a bit of watered down soup. We were hungry after being at Birkenau.
Only one Pruzhany inhabitant shamefully accepted the task of "kapo"
assistant. Other Jews from Pruzhany belonged to several work groups. A majority
group worked on shoemaking and tailoring workshops, placed on the camp
buildings; also in the washing place, the bakery, cutting trees with the forest
Commando, in the "interkunft" (a commando in charge of dead clothing
classification).
Some
people worked in a commando as building workers, on the construction of a
factory behind the town. Other Jews would help the Germans and poles since they
were master builders on the "folgas", which was a commando building a
factory behind the town of Auschwitz. Other Jews from Pruzhany used to work on
the munitions factory "Union", and on the "D.A.W."
building, where the carpentry workshops were placed. Some worked as electrical
engineers and roof making.
When
the group went out with the commando, we belonged to the "chosen
ones", because every Tuesday and Friday we received an "extra",
consisting of half bread and a bigger piece of "wurtsh". Those who
stood at the huts cleaning or doing other jobs, and the ills at hospital,
didn't get any extra food. The "kapos" in charge of the food
distribution used to steal from the lean portions. (later they would deal in
this food).
Our
community of Pruzhany decreased every day. Those who hadn't a "good
job" received very little food, and perished from hunger and exhaustion.
Aid
We
didn't really know what kind of diseases the ills suffered from. One thing was
evident: if they didn't get well quickly, if they were weak and thin, they
would be sent to the crematorium. When our Jews from Pruzhany started to turn
up at hospital, specially women who could hardly stand on their feet, we, a few
men from Pruzhany, met and decided the strongest should help the weakest. It
all began with a personal aid from time to time.
We
thought that, in order to strengthen an ill, we had to give him some soup. Soup
gets the stomach full, and it seems to be brimful. We were decided to help the
weakest, and looked for the chance to find some more soup. In order to achieve
it, we had to address the "kapos" since they used to take a share of
our portions and then sale it. For this bit of soup we had to "pay"
in a piece of bread, margarine or "wurtsh". By this stuff the
"kapos" started a new "commercial transaction" but through
this we were able to provide a weak person a little bit of soup. The number of
ill and weak people from Pruzhany increased. It wasn't enough the personal aid.
That's why a group of people from Pruzhany decided to organize an Aid
Committee; we were five: AVREMEL SELETZKY, HERSHEL MOROVSKY, YANKEL ROZANSKY
(he fell during a march before the liberation), YANKEL BARBEL and myself.
One
Sunday when we didn't attend to work, we met on the block 15 on YANKEL BARBEL's
bed, and we decided every Pruziner should give up a share of his own bread per
week. Those who were able to, would give some more. Every member of the
Committee of Five, had to get in touch with the other Jews from Pruzhany in the
blocks, and tell our decision to them. I was appointed as Chairman and
Treasurer of the "Bread Box". The aid for ills at Hospital was
achieved through the health officer SHLOMO SHEBRINSKY (he currently lives in
the USA). HERSCHEL MOROVSKY, a carpenter, was frequently sent by the kapos in
order to arrange several issues of the camp; he had the chance to help the
women and weak people, but he hardly found them.
MOISHE
GOLDBERG the baker, AVREMEL SELETZKY the roof maker and YANKEL BARBEL the
electrical engineer, were able to get closer to the Jews from Pruzhany who were
spread on the camp. We wanted to help every jew from Pruzhany. Little by little
our activity in the Aid Committee increased. We showed we could help people,
not only with food. Through several combinations we could transfer weak people
to easier tasks. Sometimes we achieved it. In our labor help we weren't always
slaves of geography. If one of us went to the hospital in order to help some
Pruziner, and beside him was another moribund from other town, he got our help
too. Many things remained to be done. Our aid was modest, but that little was
useful to keep those people alive. Our Labor Aid Committee worked until the
evacuation of Auschwitz. We continuously looked for the means to enlarge our
Bread Box in order to help as many people as possible. HERSHEL MOROVSKY and
YANKEL BARBEL found a little bag with bonds that belonged to a polish Jew named
LIPSKY (who lives now in New York). Both members of the Aid Committee gave this
values back to their owner but only after he contributed a certain amount for
the ills who needed food.
There
were also "selections" at Auschwitz. Suddenly the Germans ordered to
make a line and sent a number of people to the "chimney" or
transferred them to some place they never came back from. It wasn't always the
weak, the "unable to work", but anyone the Germans chose. The Germans
had to bring a certain number of Jews to the chimney.
One
day we saw MENDEL BODGAS from Pruzhany (he lives now in USA) in one of those
lines. HERSHEL MOROVSKY addressed to the "kapo", who we had
"negotiations" with, and HERSHEL asked him to save MENDEL BODGAS from
the line. The kapo did so, and we hid our Pruziner. Things like this happened
during the selections or the transportation, but despite the great effort of
our aid task, we couldn't achieve wonders. From about 2000 workers from
Pruzhany in the camp, only 200 survived.
In
our aid task also took part the young women from Pruzhany. Even though they
accomplished easier works, they could contribute on food or a coat. Among the
young women who collaborated was SHIFRA TENEMBOIM (now SELETZKY) and LIBE
BODGAS.
Before
Liberation
At
the beginning of 1945, we often saw allied planes flying over Auschwitz. We
heard far shots. We began to have hopes, but it also grew our fear for Germans
wanting to kill us before the liberation. From January 17 to 18, the nazis
informed the kapos and the blocks superiors the whole camp would be evacuated.
Disillusionment and fear were remarkable on them long before. In the nights
everything had to be dark. It was forbidden to light a single candle. Our fear
increased as well. What are the nazis going to do with us?
We,
the Pruziners, began to say our opinions again. Some thought we should look for
a shelter in the very camp, and not to follow the German evacuation. Others
didn't agree with this plan.
Meanwhile
the night of January 17 was getting closer and the nazis hurried to pack. The
kapos assembled their commandos and ordered everyone to get ready. So we waited
all night long. On January 18, 7 AM, a thousand prisoners left the camp. No one
knew where we were taken to. Those who had a job, didn't attend to. The kapos
and superiors brought prisoner and civil clothing for us. Each prisoner was
free to wear any. One more time our distressed minds began to guess what was
the best. Who has more chances to stay alive... A prisoner or a civil? Some
wore both clothes, one over another; in case of escaping, we'd decide the best.
We were ready for any contingency. I left Auschwitz on the second
transportation, which was the last one.
At
the camp hospital stayed the ills. Each one of us received 200 gr. of bread and
a piece of margarine. We left the camp at 8 PM and went on the whole night. On
the way the guards shot to the air. Women went ahead, and men after. If anyone
wasn't able to walk, he was shot at once and left at one side. We went on. At
dawn we arrived in a village. There we were put in a stable with the pigs,
horses and cows. When the dusk came, we were gathered again and ordered to make
a line and walk. At midnight we arrived in the little village
"Leslau" and we were put on a building til dawn. Then we were pushed
into loading carriages and moved to the "Gross Rozen" camp.
We
the Pruziners tried to stay as close as possible to each other. If one of us
got tired, other took him by the arms and helped him to walk. I was one of the
exhausted ones. I suffered from a strange faint. I couldn't keep my eyes open,
and I just wanted to lie on the ground. ISRAEL CHOMSKY (now in USA) and SHALOM
KIRZSHNER (killed just before the liberation) hold me, pulled me and encouraged
me. "ZALMAN, don't give up". And they pulled me up.
At
the "Gross Rozen" camp we were crowded on blocks. We had never seen
such narrowness and outside the ground was moody. Given the exhaustion and
hunger, people had no strength to move the feet in the mud and they died
standing on their feet. I stayed 3 weeks at Gross Rozen. In time, they began to
transfer us from one camp to another. I was on the group moved to Buchenwald.
Then from Buchenwald to several places again.
A
few fellows from Pruzhany and I arrived in "Visingen" camp, where we
worked at an oil factory for 5 weeks. We had very little food and hunger
mortified us. From Visingen we were moved to "Alach", 5 km. from
Dachau. Here we stayed 10 days, we didn't have to work and we received no food.
We knew well the meaning of hunger. What happened at Alach is impossible to
tell.
One
of us, a Pruziner named MEIR, found a big bone. Some people said if we burned
the bone on fire, it would get soft and we could eat it. After burning the
bone, MEIR asked me to split it in pieces. Once I started, people rushed at me,
asking for a bit of bone. I took a piece too, and gave the remaining to the
others. When I gave MEIR a little piece, he got very angry to me; later we knew
our fight was for a human bone.
After
those terrible ten days, we were put again into carriages and taken away.
During the journey the planes were bombing, and the train had to stop several
times. There we finally "got food". Every day we received 250 gr. of
bread and a bit of margarine. During all the way we only received soup once. No
one could measure the time we were traveling. I just remember it was on April
28 when our train stopped near the village "Yfiel-dorf-shtalter"
(between Munich and Gormisht-parten-kirchen). The tracks were blocked and we
couldn't move forward. We saw the civil Germans running with packs and
pushchairs. Then we knew the end was closer.
On
April 29 the Chief of each carriage was summoned, and asked to bring two people
each. They quickly returned with 5 pounds packs for each one, containing food
and cigarettes. It was a consignment from the Red Cross, and our SS commandant
allowed us to distribute it. The sensations of those moments are hard to
describe in words.
The
same night the Commandant summoned 3 or 4 SS from each carriage. They returned
with civil clothing. That meant they were getting ready to run away. On April
30 the American army turned up. With our help they could catch the escaping SS,
our commandant included.
We
started to walk by the carriages, and removed 19 corpses. While the train was
moving and somebody died, they would throw the body through the window. We made
a join grave for the last 19 dead. We were free.
After
Liberation
We
were sitting, exhausted and confused, waiting for the Red Cross. When nobody
came along and we had no other choice, we went to the villages. We were looking
for food and hoped to find acquaintances. Our ten survivors: ITSHE IANUSH,
IERACHMIEL KIEVATINIETZ, AVREMEL SEVELEVITZ, BERTSHICK VARSHAVSKY, LEIBL
SHAPIRO, HERSHEL CHANKOVSKY, ISRAEL CHOMSKY, SENDER ZAKHEIM, Dr.AVROM TREGER and
I, entered a village and "occupied" a room on a German's house. We
stayed there one month. The American army provided us food, but what we
received didn't satisfied our hunger. Even now it's hard to me to know what
happened. Didn't the American know we were very hungry? Or maybe they were
afraid we could get sick, or our ill stomachs couldn't digest all we could eat?
I just know we were hungry. We had to wander on the villages looking for food.
One of us, IERACHMIEL KIEVATINIETZ, died ten days after the liberation and we
buried him on the join grave. Dr.TREGER and SHEVELEVITZ got ill from
tuberculosis. The Americans moved them both to a hospital in
"Gauting". Our ills complained because they didn't want to stay away
from us. We promised not to forget them and to come back for them. We kept our
promise. Both ills got better. We stayed the whole month of May at that
village.
On
June 1st American loading trucks turned up and we were moved to
"Feldafing", which from that moment was supposed to be a resting
place for the survivors.
Feldafing
At
Feldafing we found only a few Pruziners and our group increased. Every day new
survivors arrived and 12 people used a single room. We used to sleep in six
two-floor beds. At the beginning it was enough one room. All the Pruziners who
arrived would join our group and our room. Nobody wanted to move from his
place. We held on to each other. The group represented the lost things. When we
got to be 27 Pruziners in one room, and still others kept arriving, we made up
our minds to address the Camp Committee in order to arrange other rooms for us.
The request was conceded.
On
the near camps people rumored that in Feldafing was a group of Pruziners, and
war orphans arrived from everywhere. In order to get the food portion they had to
be officially recorded in the camp. The procedures used to take a time but
meanwhile they had to be fed. We decided to join all the portions and then
distribute it on the whole group. This system threatened to starve us all.
Then
a plan came up, regarding how to increase our portions. Four members of our
group, HERSHEL CHANKOVSKY, BERTSHIK VARSHAVSKY, LEIBL SHAPIRO and I,
compromised ourselves to bring the kitchen's stew for all the group. Thus
everyone got a double portion and our group got better. Other people addressed
to the camp committee offering to work illegally, payed by food. This would
enlarge the group incomes. In general, both the camp committee and the UNRA
(United Nations Refugee Agency) representatives got on well with the group and
always fulfilled our requests. Our group became very popular, and people from
other villages like Malch and Shereshev joined too.
At
the beginning of 1946 the situation at the camp got complicated. From Poland
ex-partisans Pruziners arrived, and others who had been to Russia during the
war. Our group was 120 members already. The new members brought a different
spirit. Apparently we suffered the horrors of war on different conditions and
this created a difference between us. Personal conflicts began to happen between
the members, and it was very hard to keep the group together. Certainly the
former aid-lack of the beginning, decreased little by little : we didn't depend
on the material aid that the group provided, the fear to solitude was bigger,
and the group became into our family.
The
Last Act Of Our Partisans At Pruzhany
From
our partisan survivors we knew this: A few days after the annihilation of
Pruzhany's Ghetto, a group of our partisans entered in Pruzhany and exploited
the building where the Gestapo was placed (it used to be MOISHE BURSHTEIN's
house, on May 3rd street, formerly Potchtove street) There were the Gestapo
nazis. One from the partisan group survived and lives now in New York.
The
Tasks Of The Pruzhany Group
People
who belonged to the group committee were: HERSHEL CHANKOVSKY, LEIBL SHAPIRO,
AVROM SELETSKY, BERTSHIL VARSHAVSKY and myself. We were not satisfied only with
the survivors from Pruzhany, but we exerted ourselves to find them. We sent our
representatives to every camp in Germany, Austria and Italy. To Poland as well.
Despite the poor communication, we brought everyone to Feldafing. When we heard
that at Bergen-Belsen were female survivors, we sent five of us to bring our
group of women from Pruzhany, Shereshev, Malch and other towns near to
Pruzhany. To our group joined lonely people from Byalistok, Slonim and others.
The group members used 7 rooms, 6 for men and the 7th, the bigger and nicer,
for women. Some of our members were at Waldheim, near to Feldafing, and the
FRAIMAN's family countryside near Munich. They enjoyed with us and took part on
our assemblies and memorial ceremonies.
We
used to have lunch together, to chat, and sometimes to sing. As soon as the
women arrived, new couples constituted. New families were made. The group made
several weddings. We were getting ready for a wedding, but it didn't take
place, and that affected us very much. A young girl from Pruzhany was supposed
to marry a young man from Poland. The wedding was scheduled on Sunday,
everything was ready. On Friday the young man's wife turned up, and he didn't
know she was alive.
We
were very worried for our youth's destiny. The camp demoralized them. At the
beginning, after the German defeat, the young Jews used to travel on trains and
take the German people's luggage. The youth took the luggage in the right
moment the train was stopped, and then threw it through the train's window. He
jumped off the train, took the luggage and escaped. We wouldn't wait til the
police caught the young man. We found out four of our members making this
crime, and we warned them we would expel them in case this happened again.
These facts showed us we had to mind our youth. We had to request to the US:
help to save our youth from demoralization. Not to demoralize ourselves...
We
thought a lot about this. We tried to avoid our Pruziners from expecting free
portions in the camp. Each one of us began to look for a job. A big part of our
people started working at workshops, magazines, dining rooms, and the camp
police as well.
Contact
With America
We
began to look for the way to contact our relatives overseas. No one had any
address nor reminded it. I remembered that, before the war, an activist of our
community named ARIE ZLOTNIK traveled to New York but I didn't have his
address. By chance we met an American Jewish soldier, SAL (SHLOIME) MORRITZ,
and we asked him to write a letter to his parents in order to find ARIE ZLOTNIK
in New York. A time later, this Jewish soldier gave us the address, joyfully
and proudly.
We
sent ARIE the complete list of the Pruzhany survivors, and the location of
everyone. We also enclosed the description of our destruction. We requested him
to print the list in the Jewish press of America, and the worldwide press too.
The Relief Committee of USA, that had a large tradition since WWI on Pruzhany's
Jews aid, took charge of our existence. As soon as they received the first
message, they began to help us without waiting for the relative's answer. They
sent packs containing food, clothing and money. The group committee found
several difficulties for they had to mind everything was shared in justice and
no offenses. We had plenty of sorrow. The fear of a demoralization helped us to
get through this difficulty.
American
Jewish soldiers began to turn up, which families came from Pruzhany. They
offered their help too. One of them was named HEIMAN YERUZOLINSKY (or
ROZALINSKY)
The
Relief Committee of New York with the participation of Jews from Philadelphia,
Chicago, Cuba and Argentina, created a fund for Pruzhany's survivors. They
collected 50.000 dollars for us.
When
the first delegation of Jewish workers arrived in Feldafing, its
representatives VOLPERT and GOLDMAN brought 2000 dollars in the name of the
Relief Committee. The emigration times came.
The
Committee of Jewish workers, the HAIAS and the JOINT did their duties, but the
Pruziner Relief Committee didn't remain behind. They helped by providing
identity cards for immigration and money as well. Most of Pruziners traveled to
USA, and smaller groups met their relatives in Israel, Cuba and Argentina.
Those who arrived in the first period in USA and Israel, received assistance
through money and job. In this campaign to help WWII survivors, many Jews from
Pruzhany took part. To name them all it's impossible.
Of
course we didn't forget about the promise done to our ill people at
"Gauting". There were more than the first two Pruziner Jews. Those
who got well completely, traveled with us. The other three ill, weren't allowed
to enter USA and live now in Norway.
New
Pruzhany Victims In The Fight
In
1944, in the women camp of Auschwitz, a rebellion broke out. People exploited
the crematoria and killed some "kapos". Two young girls who worked at
the munitions factory "Union" were in charge of preparing the
explosive stuff. Before the rebellion they were detected and hanged. One of
them was the Pruzhany girl ESTHER WAISBLUM, SHIMEN YADLOV's grand-daughter, and
before the war she used to live in Warsaw.
David
Kabizetsky
After
being liberated, we settled on Feldafing. We heard that, in a near wood, SS
officers still went around. A group of policemen of the camp went to the woods
and there was a confrontation between the policemen and the SS. DAVID
KABIZETSKY, policeman of the camp who was from Pruzhany, died in that battle.
We arranged his burial, which became into a protest demonstration against the
nazism. He was our victim on German ground.
In
America
Here
the Jews from Pruzhany use to gather. They take part on public meetings
organized by the United Pruziner Relief Committee, that joins everyone equally.
Every first Sunday of February is our Martyr's Memorial Day..