Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

Tamara Sessler - February 4, 2008

Jews Rescuing Jews

We met two people in Jerusalem who are trying to lead a movement to talk about the Jews who rescued Jews.

Who are those people?

Well, they have a long list. Winton is, is one of them. The um, there was several Jewish partisan groups who...

No, I mean who were the people to...

Oh, Hannah ???

Hannah, Hannah ???

??? and Elana ???. I can't remember Chaim's last name but it's--they have support in the United States.

Where have they come from?

She's from Holland. She lives in Jerusalem...

Yes.

...but she's from Holland. I think they're both from Holland actually and when there was--last October there was a Hidden Child conference that took place in Jerusalem and they presented their case at the conference. I think they'll get something--they're really pushing Yad Vashem to, uh...

That'd be very good. I would certainly like for him to be acknowledged. But, you know, this is a principle, the Jews who helped Jews no matter how good they were--I thought at first for many years that he wasn't acknowledged because his grandparents were Jews. I didn't know that both his parents were Jewish. I didn't know that.

Well, I didn't know his father was Jewish.

As far, as far as I know they were both Jews. I think they were called Oppenheim. Maybe I'm wrong but I think so, I think so.

I'll check for you.

Yes.

I know his mother was.

That'd make him a Jew if his mother was...

Yeah, makes him ???, um...

...according to our religion anyway. Are you religious at all?

Not really. Well, she is more than I am. We belong to a synagogue in Detroit. Um, we joined the synagogue because a lot of the Czech survivors whom I interviewed belong to this--it's called the Hungarian Shul--and uh, they sort of dragged us in.

So you go to shul like I g...went to shul when I was little.

Pretty much, yeah.


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