From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letter from the Bedzin ghetto, March 1943

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letter sent by an unidentified individual, evidently from the Bedzin ghetto*, to Schwarzbaum in Switzerland, 29 March 1943.** 2 pages, handwritten, original, in German The sender thanks Schwarzbaum for his letter and the regards from Jozio, on behalf of himself and his family. He is upset at Hela for not replying to his letters, and says he will not answer even if she does reply. He asks if there is any news from Moniek. The sender and his family often meet Mrs. Lachman, who sends her regards and wishes to receive a letter from her son. The sender would like to receive letters from Tadek. Tadek's mother Reginka and her husband would love to hear from him. According to the sender, he has no news and "all is well". Henia would also love to hear from Tadek, and if Tadek sees Zak, he should ask him to write. The sender sends a message to Karol to call his parents, sister and nephews, who are waiting to hear from him. If [Tadek?] does not answer, he will stop writing. He also sends regards from Rega [Regina] and her family: they will soon live with their father.*** Tadek would be very happy to see them**** Tadek should be ashamed for not writing (and their acquaintances regularly receive letters from their families). The sender adds that he and his family would be happy to get a present like Adela. Notes: * Other letters that were in this file were transferred to files 41499 and 41500 in the Holdings Registry. See also files 24087 and 39758 in the Holdings Registry and file 2047 in the Collections Section. ** Schwarzbaum added a handwritten note: received on 6 April; forwarded to Abr. [?] Berna on 9 April; forwarded to Adela 12 April. *** This is possibly a euphemism suggesting that their life was in jeopardy, and they would "join" their father in the netherworld. **** this is possibly a coded language for the urgent need to obtain foreign passports to exit Poland. Background on the Liwer family: Eliezer – Leon Rechnic (born Jan 27, 1903) was married to Gitta – Gucia Rechnic (born Oct 8, 1903) the daughter of Chaim Liwer (born Oct 5, 1867 & Rywka Liwer (Born July 6, 1868). They lived in Bedzin. Gucia had eight more brothers and sisters (six brothers and two sisters): Abram Liwer; Szmuel Liwer; Szymon Liwer; Rizel Schmidt nee Liwer (born 1897) who lived in Monaco before the war; Estera – Edzia Bialka nee Liwer (born 1901); Szlomo Liwer; Marek Liwer; Josef Liwer. Survived: Abram & his wife Chawa; Szmuel & his wife Leonia; Josef & his wife Bronia; Marek & wife. Perished: Gucia & her husband Eliezer; Szymon, his wife Regina & their son Icek; Rizel & her husband Mosze Schmidt; Edzia, her husband Zvi & their daughter Judith; Lewia Liwer, the wife of Szlomo Liwer (who passed away before the war); The parents – Chaim & Rywka Liwer. About Alfred Schwarzbaum: Alfred (Alf) Schwarzbaum was a Jewish merchant from Bedzin, Poland, who fled to Switzerland after the occupation. In Switzerland, he set up a relief enterprise, and supported hundreds of Jews. Alfred (Alf) Schwarzbaum was born in 1896 in Sosnowiec, Poland. He later moved to Bedzin, became a businessman and started a family. In late September 1939, following the German occupation of Poland, he sent his daughter to England. In November 1939, he was jailed for several weeks in Myslowice and was interrogated by the Gestapo. After his release, he turned down an offer from Mosheh Merin, head of the Sosnowiec Jewish council, to be his deputy. Using his connections and his fortune, he was able to obtain visas for Switzerland. In April 1940, he left Poland and settled in Lausanne. Schwarzbaum soon started sending out food, clothing, money and papers to Poland. He managed to navigate between the often uncoordinated Jewish and Zionist organizations based in Switzerland, to transfer financial help to Jews in Poland. He sent hundreds of parcels to German occupied localities, via Lisbon, Sweden and Turkey. He visited refugee camps in Switzerland, and corresponded with persons living under the Nazi rule. He also produced passports, which led him into trouble with the Swiss police, who feared for violation of the country's neutrality policy. In 1945, he immigrated to Mandate Palestine. In Israel, he supported funds and provided stipends for students in need, in several Israeli institutes for higher education. He died in 1990.