From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letter from Helena - Henia, Bedzin ghetto, January 1943

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letter sent by Helena - Henia from the Bedzin ghetto, Poland, to Schwarzbaum in Switzerland, 15 January 1943. Helena enclosed a photo, allegedly so Schwazrbaum would not forget her. She also mentions her dated of birth 3 January 1901 She also asks about his family and asks him to tell Tadek that she and her mother are waiting for a sign of life from him. Notes: 1. The photo and date of birth were presumably intended for Schwarzbaum to use them to provide Helena a foreign passport to exit Poland. 2. Additional letters from this file were transferred to files 41352, 41353 and 41354 in the Holdings Registry. 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.