From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Two letters from the Steinlauf family, 1945, regarding Shalom Dudelzak

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Two letters sent by the Steinlauf family to Schwarzbaum in Switzerland, 1945. The letters concern the Steinlaufs' attempt to contact Szulim - Shalom Dudelzak. 6 pages, print and handwritten, original, in Polish Source file: 26196 Note: Dudelzak and Felix Aisenstadt were in the Warsaw ghetto, from which they were transferred to the Vittel camp in France. They escaped from a transport to Auschwitz and reached Switzerland by foot. In Switzerland, Felix met Irene - Irka Schwarzbaum, Alfred's daughter, and the couple would marry in Haifa, Mandate Palestine, in 1946. Felix's testimony is in the Collections Section, file 3576. Inventory: 1. Letter sent by the Steinlaufs from New York to Schwarzbaum, 21 (or possibly 27) August 1945. Mr. Steinlauf expresses interest in a list of inmates who are still in Vittel and writes that he has heard about Dudelzak in Switzerland. He adds that he has tried to contact Dudelzak through the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) but has not received a reply, and asks him to contact him. Steinlauf and his wife have contacted different persons and institutions trying to help him. They met Mr. S. and repaid some of Dudezlak's debts. So far, they have not been able to contact Dudelzak's brother and are hoping for more information. He asks about Dudelzak's plans and adds that he has heard about a transport to Palestine that would be leaving shortly with refugees from La Bourboule, France, who were previously in Vittel. Steinlauf asks abotu Felix Aisenstadt and asks whether he has received his regards from Abraham - Adolf Silberschein. 3 pages, typewritten and handwritten, in Polish 2. Letter sent by Mrs. Steinlauf to Schwarzbaum on 4 December 1945. She encloses a letter for Dudezlak, who is currently in a DP camp. She explains that Dudelzak arrived with Felix to Vittel. 2 pages, handwritten, original, in Polish 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.