Sonya S. Holocaust testimony
Abstract
Videotape testimony of Sonia S., who was born in 1912. She recalls living in Klimonto?w with her parents and sisters; teaching in a Jewish school with her father; German occupation; difficulty dealing with her father's illness; finally finding a doctor to amputate his leg; secretly teaching with her father; hiding during round-ups; reluctance to believe rumors of extermination; deportation; escaping from the cattle car with her sisters; hiding for two years with assistance from non-Jews; liberation by Soviet troops; marriage; antisemitic incidents in Rzeszo?w; moving to Krako?w; traveling via Budapest and Graz to Modena; her daughter's birth; and emigration to the United States in 1949. Mrs. S. discusses the importance to her survival of being with her sisters; their deep sorrow at having to leave their parents; the gruesome experience of living "in a hole" for twenty-two months; the difference between telling the story and actually living it; and sharing her experience with her daughter.
Extent and Medium
2 videocassettes
Conditions Governing Access
This testimony is open with permission.
Conditions Governing Reproduction
Copyright has been transferred to the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies. Use of this testimony requires permission of the Fortunoff Video Archive.
Rules and Conventions
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Process Info
compiled by Staff of the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies
People
- S., Sonya, -- 1912-
Subjects
- Escapes.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Psychological aspects.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Rescue.
- Aid by non-Jews.
- Hiding.
- Postwar experiences.
- Survivor-child relations.
- Antisemitism -- Postwar.
- Holocaust survivors.
- Video tapes.
- Women.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Personal narratives.
- World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives, Jewish.
- Sisters.
Places
- Klimontów (Poland)
- Kraków (Poland)
- Rzeszów (Poland)
- Modena (Italy)
- Budapest (Hungary)
- Graz (Austria)
Genre
- Oral histories. -- aat