When The Singing Stopped

Putting It All Together

Many children are proud of who their parents are. Few are prouder than my brother, Perry and me, as sons of Polish Holocaust survivor Alina Boruchowska (Kerson). I decided to sit down with my mom to hear her story in whole since I had only heard bits and pieces over the years. We spent 6 months talking, crying, and remembering what happened. The facts are not always clear and are ever-changing, but this is my mother’s story.

Growing up we found it hard to understand why Mom did not have parents to visit or share occasions with. We had grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins on my father’s side. However, on Mom’s side, we had only Aunt Blanca, who was like a grandmother to us. We called her Ciocia, or “auntie” in Polish. Blanca was Alina’s aunt, that is, her mother’s younger sister. Blanca was 16 years older than Mom and they survived the war together, which created a unique bond between them. The only way Mom survived was through Blanca’s inner strength and determination to survive the horrors of being Jewish in Poland during the horrors of the Holocaust. Together, they shared the heavy burdens of lost parents, grandparents, siblings, cousins, and friends, which are unimaginable to most people. Mom would tell us a story about how she loved to sing, and her grandparents would wonder when she would ever stop singing and be quiet. October 4th, 1942 was the day the singing stopped, and her life would be forever changed. This was the last day she saw her parents.

The Early Years

Before the outbreak of war, Alina lived a normal childhood in Sosnowiec, Poland. Sosnowiec was an industrial city in the Śląsk region, an area of Poland known as Zagłębie. The general population was approximately 250,000, and from those, 25,000 were Jewish.  Alina was an only child, coming from a comfortable middle-class family. Alina lived a sheltered life, pampered and loved by her family and quite naive to the world.  Her father, Isador, owned a lime mine, which was used in making concrete. Her mother, Paula, was a typical housewife. She loved clothes, both shopping for them and wearing them - always determined to make a fashion statement. As a child, Alina was always cheerful, happy, and upbeat, singing all the time.  She also enjoyed ice skating, and riding in horse-drawn open sleighs. Her grandfather Eli, on her father’s side, was mayor of Sosnowiec and Alina remembered that the people on the street would tip their hat, wave, greet, and say hello to him. Once a week her grandfather would open his home to the needy and serve them dinner. Her father, Isador, would help his father with these weekly dinners, so he was popular as well. Alina also remembers enjoying time with her grandparents in Czestochowa. 

Eli, Alina’s grandfather, died from stomach cancer in his early 60s. Rifka, his wife and Alina’s grandmother never left Sosnowiec.

Alina received a great education in a private non-secular school. She had friends and did well in school. However in third grade, Alina began to encounter anti-Semitism, when kids pushed her on the ground in the hallway and began making anti-Jewish remarks. She never forgot being called a “dirty cat.”  As the propaganda machine grew, rumors were spread that Jews were dirty and that their men would rape your daughters. The Polish non-Jewish kids picked up the hatred from home and in the community.  Handbills and posters were posted on street lamp posts, and non-Jewish children were repeating what they were seeing and hearing. The taunting escalated to the point where even a close classmate turned on her.

In the fourth grade even though she and the other Jewish students had good grades, they were expelled. The only way she could continue her education was to attend Jewish-only private schools. The family continued to hope that the situation would change, and Alina spent her 5th through 9th grade years at this substandard school. After 9th grade, around 1937, all the Jewish schools closed, and Alina could no longer continue her education. Believing that tides would turn, her mother hired a private teacher to keep Alina’s education going.

In June of 1939, Alina traveled to Czestochowa to spend the summer with her grandparents. Czestochowa also had a large Jewish population with a number of Jewish stores, large factories and many small factories that made men's clothing and employed a large number of Jewish workers. She visited her grandparents frequently, but this time would be very different. The war’s outbreak was now eminent and Alina never returned home. When the Nazis entered Poland on Friday, September 1, 1939, Alina’s parents Paula and Isador, packed up their sterling silver, china, jewelry and other valuables and left Sosnowiec to meet Alina and the rest of the family in Czestochowa.

Family Attempts to Leave

Once the family was able to unite, it was decided that they would all flee Poland together. Alina remembers her grandfather miraculously hiring a city bus to drive the family to a safe haven in Konin. One of Isador's work associates owned a brick factory there and offered shelter to Alina, her parents, grandparents, and Aunt Blanca, as well as other family members, including Uncle Joe, and Joe’s wife Linka. Securing transportation, let alone a city bus that would take them through the countryside, was no small feat. It was likely either abandoned or stolen. Using dangerous roads that had poor driving conditions, and driving through the night, the family miraculously made the 200 kilometers to Konin. The family was able to have refuge for two days in Konin with her father’s work associate, who owned a brick factory. The owner’s family was unable to leave due to his disabled child who could not travel. The driver became scared, left the family, and turned around and went back to Czestochowa. Then Alina and her family traveled to their next safe haven option, a small village between Konin and Radom. The family finally arrived at the village. But then a Volksdeutsche, or Polish German, torch the village and forced them to continue moving about the devastated country. From there, they headed towards the city of Radom. Alina recalled that the walking wreaked havoc on Paula’s varicose veins and her legs eventually began to bleed.

While on their trek, they witnessed Polish spies using flashlights to help direct the German mortar and shelling efforts. Mortar fire was exploding all around them. Paula prayed to God that if they lived through this she would always light the Friday night candles. They made it to Radom, and instead of heading towards Russia as originally planned, the family saw that the town was overrun by the Germans. Poland had fallen to Germany in seven days. In Radom the family needed to hide from the Germans. Through word of mouth they learned about a Jewish organization that helped Jews stay in apartments short term. They were offered the apartment of a family that had recently fled to Russia. They stayed in the apartment for about four days until they decided to return to Czestochowa. The family then caught rides in cars, on carriages, and walked until arriving back at Czestochowa. 

The years since these events have left limited clarity for Mom about how they were able to again make it back to Czestochowa, but she vaguely remembers a lot of walking and possibly paying people to drive the family.

Czestochowa

Ten days after leaving Czestochowa, the family returned and found the town in disarray, assuming it would be safe. Alina’s grandfather, Myer, owned a fabric store that sold high-end English-made fabrics.  The store had been emptied of all of its goods. The merchant who owned a similar business next door, which sold high-end furs and fabrics turned them in to the Nazis and stole their merchandise. As mentioned earlier, people like this were known as Volksdeutsche, loyal Polish Germans who would snitch on Jews. Myer was jailed.  Thankfully, Alina’s mother and grandmother were able to visit him and bring him food, partially due to Paula’s beauty and flirtatious ways. Eventually Myer was released and rejoined his family. At that time, Alina and her parents were living with her grandparents, in their now over-crowded apartment. Czestochowa was occupied on Sept 3rd, 1939. On the next day, the Nazis killed 300 Jews in an action known as “Bloody Monday.” At the time, there were approximately 30,000, Jews living in the town of Czestochowa.  No one ever thought that the Nazis would take over the entire country of Poland in just 7 days. Within one week of the Nazi occupation of Poland, the entire Polish Jew population became imprisoned.

The Ghetto is Formed

Later, in 1939, a Jewish ghetto was formed. The ghetto was large and included the street where the family lived in Alina’s grandparent’s apartment. The ghetto in Czestochowa was one of the most heavily populated in Poland, second only to the Warsaw Ghetto. The ghetto was not walled off and at first there was movement in and out of it. There was a large building on the corner of Aleja and Garbaldi streets. This building housed all of the professional Jews – for example doctors, jewelers, dentists, and shoemakers, everyone that was important to the Nazis. When not under guard, one could go through the building onto Aleja Street, which was the main street of Czestochowa. Isador would go in and out this way as he fit into the non-Jewish community due to his blue eyes, light colored hair and upper-class Polish accent. He did not look Jewish and with appropriate documents could move around the City.  Isador was a businessman and even throughout the occupation of Poland, he bought and sold wood and was able to earn some money. Isador and Paula still thought that one day they would be able to return to their home and so once a week they would wire money to the maid, who was presumably taking care of their apartment in Sosnowic.

Paula discovered that the tutor who had worked with Alina after the Jewish schools were closed, lived nearby and she hired her to continue Alina’s education, including teaching her English. Another neighbor taught her reading, writing, and math.  To raise money, Aunt Blanca and Paula bought cakes, cookies and coffee on the black market to sell from the empty store where her grandfather once had as his fabric store. The entire family, Alina, her parents, and Aunt Blanca, were still living together in the grandparents’ two-room apartment.  Then there was a major family conflict that occurred over money, which ripped the family apart. Some family members thought that Isador should equally share his earnings with the whole family, but he disagreed. Alina and her parents moved across the street into a one-room apartment, which the Polish underground found for them. The new apartment did not have indoor running water and they had to use outside bathroom facilities.

During this time, life was changing rapidly for the inhabitants of Czestochowa. Food became scarce, and random shootings were common. By 1941, the crowded ghetto had about 48,000 inhabitants and it became more difficult to leave.  Paula became extremely depressed - to the point of attempting suicide.  She used acid Isador had in a vial. Alina and her father had to pull the vial away before Paula could drink it, but she spilled some on herself, which caused burns.

As the situation deteriorated in the ghetto, the family was told to stay away from windows. Nazi’s shot to kill. Alina’s best friend was shot and killed.

By April 1, 1942, the daily bread quota of 100 grams was reduced to 50 and potatoes were never supplied despite earlier declarations. The quota of sugar was 50g per month. “The energy value of daily food ration was no more than 200 calories.”

The Selections

When the first selection began, Alina’s family stayed overnight in their neighbor’s basement, which was behind her grandparent’s apartment. They stood there quietly for two days. Prior to the war, Alina’s father had given this neighbor a $400.00 loan. Maybe the neighbor felt indebted to my grandfather and thus allowed the family to hide from the Germans. While hiding in the neighbor’s bunker, Isador buried his jewelry, which was later recovered by Blanca and Alina, and was sold so they had money to survive.

One of the family’s neighbors were bakers. They had a 16-year-old son named Carl Libickei, who had a crush on Alina. Whenever she visited her grandparents, Carl would come to visit her. One time, he gave Alina a silver trinket box. Sometime later, he offered her sanctuary by offering for her to leave town with his family, who were going to work as bakers for the Germans. He asked Alina to marry him so that as a couple they would be safe. Alina agreed as long as her parents could go with them.  Carl said “No,” as he already had too many other people taking refuge, who were acting as bakers, and so she turned him down.  She heard a few months later, that Carl got into an argument with an SS agent and was shot dead. The rest of his family survived the war.

October 4, 1942 is the date that Alina will never forget and impacted her life forever. Along with 5,000 other residents, everyone that lived on Alina’s block in the ghetto was summoned via megaphone to gather their valuables and belongings. They were told that they were going to a labor camp where the food was good, the lodging comfortable, and the work was not hard. Isador, Paula and Alina gathered their belongings, filled their backpacks, and set out for the Church Square on Zawodzie Street, which acted as a train staging area. This was the beginning of the fifth selection.  Before Alina left the apartment, she broke all of the precious china her mother brought with her from home, so the Germans would not steal it when looting the apartment. Alina recalls the Polish people on the streets clapping and cheering while this mass of people, carrying backpacks or suitcases, walked to the staging area. On the way to the square they had to go over an overpass with the train station below, Paula told her daughter that she had sewn into the lining of her one and only green coat $100.00 and the addresses of both Uncle Romek who lived in Warsaw, and Uncle Bernard, who lived in San Francisco. She told Mom that if they got separated she should try to get in touch with either of them. Alina had not seen her grandparents or other family members since the family fight and did not know where they were.   

In 2012, when part of the family visited Czestochowa for the 67th reunion of Czestochowa survivors, we took a walk along Alleah Street. Coming upon the overpass, with the rail platform below, Alina froze in her steps, her knees buckled, and starting to melt, she fell into Perry’s arms, her breath taken away. It was then we all realized where we were. We saw this pain on our mother’s face as she relived the scene, over 67 years later. For Alina, it seemed like yesterday.

Stationed at the square near the train platform was the head of the Czestochowa police, a Nazi by the name of Paul Degenhart. He was an unattractive man with an ape-like face that provoked terror, as if he was the devil or a blood thirsty animal. He formed a line to the left for the young, strong and smart and a line to the right for everyone else. The right line was the largest and included the very young, elderly, and a major portion of the ghetto police, including the respected Jewish police liaisons known as Juderants. Isador and Paula were summoned to the right. Alina followed but was then told to go into the other line - on the left. She clung to her parents but was threatened by the man known as the devil. He held a gun to Alina’s temple and told her, “If you don’t go to the left I will shoot you in front of your parents. Don’t worry about them they are going to a better labor camp.” On their forced march to the train platform, her mother told Alina,” If we get separated look in the lining of your coat.” In the coat lining she sewed in a note with the addresses of two of Alina’s uncles - Romek in Warsaw, and Sam in San Francisco, California.

Everyone clutched a suitcase or wore a backpack filled with clothing. Some had hidden money and jewelry sewn into their clothing.  Unbeknownst to the passengers going to the right, they had a one-way ticket to Treblinka. On that day, 350 people formed a line to the left that would move on to labor roles while nearly 5,000 people lined up to the right were headed to die. This would be the last time Alina would ever see her parents, Paula and Isador, who were only 36 and 44 years old when they boarded the train to the notorious death camp Treblinka. Alina and the other 350 chosen young people waited at the train platform until all of the deportees were loaded onto the awaiting cattle cars. Each car carried 120 people and the train consisted of 60 cars and as the train left the same polish people were clapping and cheering.  After watching this surreal site, all 350 soon-to-be laborers (called loggers), were marched back to the ghetto which was now smaller and comprised of only 3 square blocks. This smaller ghetto was in the poorest and oldest part of Czestochowa, surrounded by barbed wire and had only one gate. Mom spent her first night in barracks set up in make-shift factories. Alina’s neighbor from the ghetto also just lost her parents and siblings.  She was in her mid-twenties and had an air of confidence about her that was comforting to Alina. The luck is that Paul Degenhart saved Alina’s life that day by choosing her to go to the left.

On Her Own

Alina’s new home was a barrack that housed 8 girls in a 150-square-foot room with concrete floors that ensured each girl’s breath would freeze atop the single blanket they were given to survive the cold winter nights. 1939 was one of the coldest winters in Poland. Sadly, being warm was not a concern of the Nazi’s.

On the second day, the Nazi guards made all of the women remove their fur collars from their coats. As Alina removed hers, she felt something in the lining of her coat.  It was the hundred dollars and note from her mother with the addresses of both of her uncles.

During this time, Alina spotted her father’s brother, her Uncle Henry, on the ghetto street in a distraught state of mind.  His wife and daughter were summoned to the left, while he was summoned to the right. Alina and her parents were never close with Uncle Henry, but she felt sorry for him and split her newly found $100, giving him $50. It ended up being too late for Henry, the next day he was taken to Treblinka. To all in the ghetto, life was like a flickering candle. All of the inhabitants were lonely, and embittered, but maintained the will to survive. On Garibaldi Street some houses were being prepared as storage rooms in which plundered property was stored. Alina’s job was to gather China, silver, and personal belongings left behind in the deportee’s apartments. Whenever the Nazi’s were not looking, Alina would break and smash China she collected to spite her enemies.

Alina was now on her own with only the $100 and the addresses of her two uncles. There were quite a few young people who were in the resistance. They were combative and caused damage to railroad tracks and German tanks.  One day, two of her paternal cousins were able to get into the ghetto. They traveled from Lodge, to meet up with the Partisans in the forest. On one afternoon, some of them spent time with Alina before leaving for their rendezvous.  This was the first time Alina heard word about where the trains were going and about the death camps. These cousins never were heard from again and are assumed to have died.

The two boy cousins were the children of Aunt Hella who was Isador’s sister. She died in Auschwitz.

Blanca Is Alive

There was an outdoor soup kitchen in the ghetto where people tended to hang out. They served a soup called Kalarobie (Kohlrabi), for which Alina developed a lasting hate. This is where people would share news and information. It was here that Alina heard news that her Aunt Blanca and her Uncle Joe had survived the selections and returned to the ghetto. Blanca escaped the ghetto days before the 5th selection, when Alina and her parents were taken to the train platform. Uncle Joe, Blanca’s brother, had special privileges in the ghetto because he was a policeman. This gave him liberty to move around freely. Joe hid Blanca amongst a pile of dead people stacked on a cart and she was wheeled out of the ghetto. For three weeks, Blanca would take refuge working on a farm before returning to Czestochowa and reunited with her brother after 3 days. Uncle Joe still harbored ill feelings towards Alina and ignored her whenever he could. This was sad for her since prior to the fight she was his favorite niece. He had adored her and she adored him.

In January 1943 at 5:00 a.m. P.A. systems blared instructions for everyone in the small ghetto to leave their barracks and stand with their hands overhead. They stood this way for 9 torturous hours. Alina did not move fast enough to line up and she was struck in the back by a German using a Black Jack. To this day, she has pain in her back in that very spot where she was struck. The morning was frigid. For some reason Alina was wearing the coat of her friend who was much smaller and she could not button the front of it. She was freezing, and her hands were numb but she knew not to drop her arms or she would be shot. On this day, Alina witnessed about 50 of her friends and neighbors shot to death. After this, through loud speakers the Germans told the remaining people that they could volunteer to go to another labor camp where they would live in good conditions. They were told to go to the train station and that each volunteer would get 1 kg of bread, jam, and a plate of soup.  Many people went to the train station. Alina, who was distraught by this time, listened to her cousin Janka and went to board the train thinking that it was for another labor camp. However, this train was bound for Treblinka. Aunt Blanca saw this happening and forced Joe to pull her off the train when other guards weren’t looking.  And so, Joe and Blanca saved Alina's life.  Aunt Blanca became like a mother to Alina and would save her life more than once in the course of the next few years.

Warsaw

Alina was able to make contact with Uncle Romek in Warsaw. Uncle Romek lived in Warsaw before the war, was well-connected, and he knew a lot of people who could help. Uncle Romek was married to a woman named Vera.  Her maiden name was Paulakoff, and she was a white Russian.  Her parents came from Russia in search of a better life and were not Communist. Vera had a Russian passport which at the time did not list your religion and papers, enabling her to move around freely so she did not have to hide with Uncle Romek.  She had a job working in a German office. Vera and her infant son George stayed in a resort with some gentile friends. One day, on a tip from a neighbor, the Gestapo barged into Vera’s cottage, insisting that she was a Jew. But Vera had the Russian passport and papers to prove otherwise. The Gestapo man saw the baby's crib and he shouted, “Now we have you”, and pulled the diaper off of George. Luckily Vera and Romek had the foresight not to circumcise their baby boy.  They remained safe.

Romek had a non-Jewish friend named Mr. Witt. Throughout the entire German occupation of Poland, Mr. Witt was a true and sympathetic friend to the Jews. Uncle Romek asked Mr. Witt to take Mom by rail to Warsaw. Alina waited for Mr. Witt in front of the large building located on the corner of Garibadi and Aleaj St. where the professional trades people of Czestochowa were previously housed. This would be one of three trips Alina made to Warsaw with Mr. Witt. He brought Alina to Uncle Romek. Originally Romek had arranged for Alina to join him where they lived with a judge in Warsaw.  Uncle Romek knew the judge before the war and for payment, the Judge risked his family’s life by renting the space, hiding him, but there was tension between the Judge's wife and Romek, when he asked about having additional inhabitants stay in the flat. She thought more people in their second floor flat was too many so Alina did not stay with them.

Romek had a friend named Linka who was also Jewish and would be one of the people who helped Alina survive the war.  Through Linka, Romek was able to secure a series of apartments and houses in which to hide. Linka also managed to secure Alina’s false I.D. She was able to contact a priest and purchase the identification of a deceased 21-year-old Christian girl, Hanna Vosa Brzecken. This cost $250.  Hanna had blue eyes and light color hair, it was a match for Alina’s looks so she assumed Hanna’s identity and became a 21-year-old Christian Pole. Alina came alone to Warsaw leaving Blanca and Joe behind in the ghetto. She first stayed in an older woman’s apartment, helping her bake cupcakes that the woman sold to survive. Alina was always hungry and ate as many as she could when the opportunity arose. Linka lived below them. Linka was able to move around Warsaw with ease, because she was savvy, and she did not look Jewish.

Alina didn’t want to stay in Warsaw and snuck back to the ghetto. She missed her parents and didn’t want to survive without them. However, her family came and got her out of the ghetto and she was brought back to Warsaw. When Alina returned she stayed in a basement shared with another woman and this woman’s boyfriend. Alina was now sixteen, young and naïve even though she had aged before her time. One day Alina and the woman wanted to step out of hiding for a few hours, so they figured out a plan. By this time Warsaw had spies and people looking for Jews. Building entrances, hallways, and staircases were painted white to deter people from hiding and seeking refuge in dark corners of these buildings They went outside wearing silly hats, thinking that they would blend in better. However, they only drew attention to themselves wearing these flamboyant hats, and they were lucky not to be questioned.

Alina really missed Blanca and wanted to return to the ghetto to be with her. She met Blanca and Mr. Witt at the train station. By this time Blanca had reconnected with a friend named Marysia, who lived in the tradesman building. Marysia was married to a high-powered ghetto police officer named Parasol. Parasol was head of the 250-men strong Jewish police. Marysia also happened to be the mistress of Paul Degenhardt's second in command.  Blanca’s friendship with Marysia facilitated her and Alina’s return to the ghetto. They walked back in by integrating with a group of day laborers heading back to the ghetto through the one exit in the tradesman building.

In 1944 Parosol, Marysia, Uncle Joe, and Aunt Linka were executed along with the Jewish Ghetto Police officers and their families. They were marched to the Czestochowa cemetery, told to dig their own graves and were shot. Uncle Joe bit the guard who was watching him before he was shot.  Parasol and Marysia had a son, who was in hiding, living with a Christian family.  The boy would grow up to become a multimillionaire in Marin County.  Mom connected with him a few years ago and they had lunch together.

Uncle Romek heard from the judge that Alina and Blanca could now live in his house. For the third time, Mr. Witt accompanied Alina to Warsaw, taking her to see Linka who then brought Alina to the judge's house. The judge lived in a villa, with first and second floor flats. He and his wife lived on the ground floor. Two weeks later Blanca arrived at the villa. In order to pay for their meager life and to pay rent to the judge, they received money through the Polish underground. Alina recieved $2,000 monthly, Blanca, $1,000 and Romek, $1,000.  Alina’s only possessions of value were her father's wedding band, a small diamond ring her parents had bought her, and the small silver box that Carl the baker’s son had given her. She sold these before she started to receive money from the underground.

The money came from American Jewish organizations. The trio lived for about one year in the judge’s flat and were as comfortable as they could be due to the circumstances. The flat consisted of two bedrooms, a dining room, a kitchen, and a bathroom.  They could not be seen living in this flat, they always had to hide, staying below the window sills, crawling to move around, keeping the flat dark at night, and huddling in a corner to stay out of view from any window facing the street.  This would become the standard of living wherever they hid.  Particularly, Romek could not be seen by the neighbor living in the villa next door which was owned by his business partner. This partner was not a Jew and Romek was convinced that if seen he would turn him over to the Gestapo. Romek worried that if he was caught, his partner would own the whole business. 

Romek acquired school books and tutored Alina a few hours a day furthering her high school education.

At the judge’s villa, their meals were very basic which is all they could afford. Food could be bought, but for a high price. For breakfast, they had one piece of dried bread and artificial coffee. Lunch was a bowl of hot water with one spoon of sour cream, floated on the top. Dinner was sparse, too, a salad with lemon squeezed on top and one piece of bread.  There were better black-market foods available, but it was expensive.  One day, while they were eating lunch, there was a knock at the door of the flat. No one knew they were there, who could be knocking? They had not left the building all year. The Gestapo announced themselves. Alina was startled and turned white with panic. She looked at Blanca and said her goodbyes She was so nervous she knocked over the rare bowl of Borscht they were eating, spilling it on the floor. Blanca, always the strong one, slapped Alina across the face, bringing the color to her cheeks, just before the Gestapo came into the room. Romek ran up a ladder and took refuge in the attic, hiding for fear they’d think he was a Jew and check to see if he was circumcised. It was a very scary moment, it turned out the Gestapo were in the wrong house and they left.

Around the time of the Kracow uprising, the judge’s neighbors, who had also hidden a group of Jews, robbed them of their money and jewelry and then turned them into the Gestapo.  Alina watched this from the crack of the window shade and witnessed all 13 of the neighboring Jews be executed that night. A few weeks after the executions, the judge’s wife grew scared of what could happen to her, and knowing that the underground money was running low, told Romek that they needed to leave.

A Hopeful Trip

The day Alina, Romek, and Blanca were forced to leave the judge’s villa, Romek went to live with Mr. Witt.  Linka informed Alina and Blanca of an organization named TODD that could assist them in leaving Poland and get them to Norway. Alina and Blanca followed her instructions and traveled by bus to a countryside farm outside of Warsaw, where they were supposed to meet a transport. When they got to the farm there was no transport, they were told to come back the next day. Blanca and Alina walked around the farm. While walking, they spotted an approaching young German soldier who looked Alina directly in the eye; she met his gaze. They recognized each other as they continued to walk past one another.

She knew him as a Jewish Pole who must have been pretending to be a German soldier.

The Jewish boy acting as a German must have turned in Alina and Blanca to the Gestapo because once they arrived back to the farm, they were summoned to the Commandant’s office. They were interrogated for four long hours. Their traveling papers were incomplete, so they could not prove where they lived or where their families lived. This made them suspicious. The interrogation was performed by two Gestapo soldiers dressed in yellow shirts, who during these 4 hours insisted that that Blanca and Alina speak in Hebrew, and Yiddish. For the first time, Blanca faltered, she began to rock backwards catching herself on the edge of the interrogator's table. Sadly, it was Blanca’s birthday, not the happiest of birthdays.

Their questioning was aimed at Alina, thinking she was the young one and would break. They grilled her, asking questions about Catholicism, the Catholic church, etc. She answered all of the questions convincingly. Finally, at the end of the interrogation, Alina and her aunt were told to go to the barracks and wait for the transports coming the next day. Alina and Blanca were distraught and contemplated jumping into the nearby river. 

Their will to live took over and their inner strength kicked in. They did not go back to the barracks; instead they made their way back to Warsaw. They broke protocol and instead of making contact with Linka prior to arriving, they simply showed up at her house. Linka was furious with them; she was concerned because going directly to her home without notice might draw unnecessary attention to her. But she let Blanca and Alina spend the night. The next day, Linka contacted Romek and the two women went to live in another safe house (WHERE?).

The Horrors of Warsaw

Linka knew of a Christian maid that was watching over an apartment building owned by her Jewish employers, just as Alina's parent’s maid did in their apartment building. Money was still flowing from the underground, so the owners could pay the maid to hide them and feed them. The maid unlocked the padlocked front door, and once they were in, promptly locked them in the place. The apartment building was typical with the main windows facing the courtyard. Spies and Polish civilians were always on the lookout for Jews hiding in these empty apartments.  Alina, Blanca, and Romek, just like before, had to stay away from the windows, a common theme for them since the beginning of the formation of the ghetto. She was reminded of her friend who was shot through one of these courtyard-facing windows. They crawled around to get to the bathroom, otherwise they huddled in a corner of the apartment all day. The maid usually came with food every three days, but once she didn’t come over for a week. They ate only salt and water. Romek’ wife Vera also came by the apartment once a week. With the money she earned, Vera was able to buy food and smuggle it into the apartment.

The trio stayed in the Warsaw apartment for nine months. After the ninth month, the maid was accused of hiding Jews by people in an adjoining apartment and they threatened to turn her into the Gestapo. Alina, Blanca and Romek immediately left.  Saying their goodbyes, Romek went to stay with his friend Mr. Witt, leaving Alina and Blanca on their own.  It was July of 1944. The Warsaw uprising was underway. During this time, Alina and Blanca wandered the streets. They took refuge in five different apartment buildings. They experienced bombings while they were in them. Body parts were strewn all over. There were few survivors.

On one day, with nowhere to go or stay, Alina and Blanca, along with five men, sat on the street in front of a demolished building. Five underground Polish resistance soldiers wandered up to the group and took them in for interrogation. They were brought to the underground command center of the 3rd district delegate, which was in a large house, and all were charged with spying. Alina and Blanca were suspected of being White Doves - German female snipers who shot Jews from rooftop vantage points. 

Among the five resistance soldiers was Samuel Weilenberg. He was one of the few survivors of Treblinka. He initiated a revolt there and then joined the Polish resistance army, never making a secret of the fact that he was Jewish. In fact, because he was Jewish, Alina and Blanca’s were lucky. After hours of questioning, Samuel said something in Yiddish, thinking that these supposed White Doves might actually be Jews. Blanca reacted to something Samuel said, and he proclaimed, “They are Jews hiding as Christian Poles.” Alina’s papers stated that she was 22 years old and Blanca had forged papers as well.  They were released and given more current passes which enabled them to travel. Samuel spent the night with them in a warehouse. In the morning, he bid them the best of luck and Alina received her first kiss.

Samuel settled in Tel Aviv, for thirty-five years, Samuel and Alina remained good friends and recently reunited during a reunion in Czestochowa. May he be of blessed memory, Samuel passed in February of 2016 at age 93.

With nowhere to go, Alina and Blanca spent the next few nights on the street. They wandered into the Wedel Polish Wafer cookie factory in Warsaw, which was mostly deserted. The owner told them to eat as much as they wanted. Until this day Alina (my mom) and I eat Wedel Wafers, which are still made in the outskirts of Warsaw.

The Warsaw uprising was over. Warsaw was leveled, the Germans broke the revolt, which lasted over a month. Against all odds the Jewish resistance held out for over 30 days fighting the Germans.  Using homemade bombs, having limited guns and ammo. The resistance was more than a nuisance to the Germans, causing heavy German casualties. The Germans would eventually whittle down the Jewish resistance and then take over Warsaw. With the Russian army on the outskirts of Warsaw and battle broke out between them and the Germans. Warsaw was leveled, and Blanca and Alina knew it was time to get out of there. By this time notes and propaganda were dropped from airplanes and with these newsletters and through the resistance, Alina realized what was going on throughout Poland. Mom had witnessed the killing in the streets, the torture and mistreatment of the Jews, but it wasn’t until they were on the streets in decimated Warsaw, did reality hit her - that the mass extermination of the Jews in Poland and Jews throughout Europe was in progress. Alina and Blanca were still using their Christian identities and Alina went to church every Sunday. Alina knew the Holy Mary and many of the Christian prayers, which helped keep her safe.

Life in the Labor Camp

Everyone was frightened and wanted out of Warsaw and out of Poland. Blanca and Alina heard that the Germans were looking for Polish citizens to work in their labor camps and they went to the train station to sign up. They were stuffed into a cattle car that carried 25 women (at least 23 of these women were Christians or so Alina thought). Among the women were two Polish Princesses. It did not matter what your social status was, royalty included. Ironically, these could have been the same cattle cars that carried so many loved ones to Treblinka, including Alina’s parents.

Before the train pulled out from the station, women often threw notes wrapped in different items, out of the train window with the hopes that a loved one or a friend would find the note.  After the shelling and leveling of Warsaw, no one knew if family members survived. Blanca took a hair curler from Alina, wrote a note intended for Romek, telling him that they were alive and heading to Germany to work. Luck had it that someone from the underground found the note and brought it to Linka, who in turn, told Romek that Alina and his sister Blanca were safe and destined for Germany. Once the train was in route, Blanca, always the wise one, started a collection of money from all of the girls.  Her plan was to bribe the guards in hopes of getting better treatment for everyone and an easier labor camp, and as far away from Poland as possible.  They had no idea where they were headed.  The train passed through Razen, Lipstick, Limpcuz, and finally stopped in Chemic. While in the car, if one of the women had to use the bathroom, they sat on a bucket. The smell was terrible and when they stopped in the large city of Dresden, Alina dumped the latrine bucket out of the door and onto the tracks. Blanca looked at her like she was nuts, “Do you want to get us all in trouble”, she said.  But Alina couldn’t tolerate the odor and that was that.

For Alina, it was hard to determine how long the women were on the train. Alina recalled, “It was dark, there were no windows, and that the cattle car smelled from the latrine bucket.”  The train made four more stops; Dresden, Liptzceg, Chemic, and finally, the small town of Limbach. Nearby was the industrial city of Chemic, which was a stronghold for the Germans at this point in the war. In September of 1944, they walked from the train station to their new accommodations in Limbach.

Because of the nature of their new passes, Alina and Blanca were considered free women who worked at the labor camp. They were paid in food stamps or coupons and were free to move around the town. They shared barracks with the other 23 women from the train for seven months. Living conditions improved immensely for them, it was better than they had in a long while. They had a bunk bed with straw on the floor, a blanket, a stove, money and/or coupons and a commissary to buy whatever food was available. Alina never forgot the 5:00 a.m. walk from the barracks to the factory in her noisy wood shoes, as they clattered on the cobblestone streets.

Their job was to make winter undergarments for the German soldiers. Alina had never learned to sew, much less use a sewing machine, and she made mistakes in the process and so the finished product was not made properly. Blanca knew how to sew and ripped the garment apart and sewed it right so that Alina would not be moved to another facility or workplace and be separated from her. After a while, the Germans caught on and moved Alina to the basement to work filling and loading shells. Alina would fill the empty shell casings with gun powder to a specified level. There were lots of little parts to put together, with Generals and other high-ranking officers overseeing the operation, making sure everything was being done to spec. There were rumors that the Germans were making these “bombs” to drop on England.

All of the other women in the barracks received packages and mail from home since they had families in Poland. Alina and Blanca did not receive any mail and the other women became suspicious, wondering why they did not get anything from their family. They wondered if Alina and Blanca were spies working for the Germans, or Jews. Alina sent a letter to Mr. Witt telling him where she and Blanca were, and then a few letters came for her. This alleviated the pressure that was building amongst their bunk mates.

Uncle Romek once sent a package of food. Alina became friendly with a seamstress she met at the labor camp who lived with her husband in a quiet town 10 minutes from Lindbaugh.  They had dinner in her friend’s home and they never suspected that she was Jewish. Alina was also friendly with a few of the captured French officers who worked in the camp. She would take a walk with one particular officer who was older and married. This relationship would help Alina in the future.

One of the Polish Princesses that Alina had traveled with, named Helenka, knew the address of the Swiss Red Cross. The Red Cross was sending packages to the labor camps that included nice Swiss watches which were easy to sell for coupons and money. The Red Cross would only send four packages per camp and the 25 women decided that they would submit everyone’s names, knowing that only four would receive the packages. When the packages came, Alina and Blanca were two of the four women chosen. In an interesting twist, the other two women chosen were also Jews hiding out as Christians. They later revealed themselves to Alina and Blanca. Alina believed there must be a God watching over those four Jewish girls, because they all got watches that could be traded for necessary items. Alina and Blanca used their watches to trade with the French Officers. They got eggs, condiments, bread, and coupons.  One day, Alina was cleaning her bunk made of straw and fell through onto Blanca’s bunk below. Blanca had hidden her eggs there. Alina broke all of the eggs and Blanca was not happy with her.

Liberation

Two French liaison officers came into the barracks to announce that the war was over. Employed by the Germans, they were the go-betweens for the workers and officers running the camp. They announced that American troops were to soon be coming into town.  Shelling was still happening a few miles away in Chemnitz, so the officers moved the women to a safer town called “Airfrut.” Here, Alina recalls seeing chimneys from a concentration camp, still smoldering from the bodies the Germans were trying to get rid of before the allies came to town. 

The French liaison officers procured a villa for the 25 women. They stayed in this villa for two months. It was a boring two months with nothing to do and time passed slowly. Alina met a Jewish Dutch officer who told her of an organization called, “UNRA”, the United Nations Rehabilitation Association, which was a volunteer group that brought food to displaced persons and mentally ill patients in a nearby hospital. Alina became a volunteer. She would get picked up at the villa and deliver food to these people.

There was a huge displacement camp in the town of Aichach which is where the women would get food.  They would take turns, in groups, alternating days, going to the D.P. camp to get food. There they would hear news and always shared what they heard. On one of these food runs, Helanka, told Alina that she met a man from her home town of Sosnowiec and that he was running the camp. People called him “Zydeck,” which means little Jew. Hannua told Alina that he knew her father. Curious as to who the ‘little Jew’ was, Blanca and Alina walked to the camp and met him, his real name was Juzek, or Joe.  He was indeed from Sosnowiec and knew of Alina’s family, the Boruchowskas in fact he had worked for Isador’s sister’s husband who was an optometrist.  Juzek was a survivor of two labor camps, Auschwitz and Buchenwald. When Joe came off the train to Auschwitz he was instructed from a fellow Pole to tell the Germans that he was a tradesman. The German war effort needed skilled tradesmen and they were spared from being killed. Joe was a fast learner, he received on-the-job training from his co-workers and they went to Auschwitz and then to Buchenwald to work.

Once when Joe was working in a manufacturing factory the workers complained to the Germans in charge about the lack of effectiveness of a worn-out drive belt in the production line. A new leather drive belt was brought to the factory to replace the worn old belt. Little did the Germans know that Joe and his co-workers intended to use the new leather belt to make new soles for their worn-out shoes. They kept the old belt on the machine. In Joe’s position running the displacement camp, he had access to goods and merchandise. If he did not have it, he could get it. Blanca needed a dress, so Joe, being a requisition officer got Blanca and all of the other 24 women new dresses. Alina needed new shoes, Joe was able to procure new shoes for her and the other women. Joe was quite popular, and he liked Blanca. They began a romance and spent time together whenever possible.

After two months of living in the villa it was time to move on. Joe got everyone suitcases. Transports were taking people back to their home towns. Most of the Polish girls said their goodbyes and got on the transports to go back to Poland, to their families and homes. Blanca asked Alina if she wanted to go back to Sosnowiec; she said, “What for? Everyone is gone.” So, they stayed in Germany. Along with Joe and Blanca, Alina went to the town of Wiesbaden, then to Marburg where Joe rented an apartment for the three of them. Blanca and Alina had spent four years in Germany from 1944-1948.

Joe had an Uncle Jake Weiner in Detroit, and Mom had her great uncle Samuel Hamburger in San Francisco. Sam was to become Alina’s guardian, loving her like a father. Sam was the brother of Alina’s grandmother. He came to America before the outbreak of W.W.1. Uncle Sam worked as a dishwasher and a barber, and then broke into real estate. He would go on to be a real estate tycoon in San Francisco.

Alina, Blanca and Joe took a trip to Frankfurt and visited the American consul. Both uncles, Sam and Jake, applied for visas to get Alina, Blanca and Joe to the U.S. There was a quota on how many Polish immigrants could go to America. Immigration restrictions were in effect in the United States after the war. Anti-Semitic feelings lingered in the public and among some key government officials. Sam was resourceful and knew a lawyer who had connections with Senator Warren. The Senator pushed Alina’s visa through the system. Before allowing the refugees to travel, they had to have a complete physical, including chest x-rays. The doctors were looking for T.B. or typhus.  Both Alina and Blanca were healthy, but someone who had T.B. switched x-rays with Blanca. Her request for a visa was denied and she would have to wait one year before reapplying. Joe and Blanca were married by this time and stayed together before securing both of their visas one year later.

Alina was anxious to get her visa and to leave Germany. Two weeks passed, then Alina got the phone call telling her that she would be a passenger on the S.S. Marine Flasher which was ready to make the voyage across the ocean to America. The Marine Flasher carried “displaced persons,” which was a far cry from the ship’s previous service. The Marine Flasher was a U.S. troop ship during WW2. Many families were brought to the United States on this ship.  

 In April 1946 the Flasher sailed from New York to Bremen, Germany refitted for carrying displaced persons and began its new life as a passenger ship.  

Alina made her way to the port in Bremen. Sam had booked a private suite for Alina, trying to offer her some relief, and comfort. But Sam was swindled, the suite was a room holding 80 people. Alina cried every day during the entire voyage, bewildered, scared, and alone. She missed Blanca’s support and companionship. She was also concerned that no one would meet her when she arrived in New York.  Alina was able to avoid going through Ellis Island because of Sam’s influential channels. Sam arranged for his nephew David, to meet her. Cousin Dave lived in New York. In New York, there was also a man Alina knew from Czestochowa, who she had seen earlier in Germany. He was smitten and wanted to marry her. Both men came to the ship to greet her.  Alina went with her cousin David, spending two weeks in his apartment before traveling to San Francisco to meet Uncle Sam. David was quite hospitable, but he was a communist and fearful that his phone was being tapped. Alina had to use the neighbor’s phone in the next apartment to call Blanca.

Coming to San Francisco

Cousin David was afraid that after all Alina had been through, if something catastrophic was to happen in flight, the family would hold him responsible. So, he Alina on a train to San Francisco to meet her West coast family. On the train she befriended an English woman who was also heading to San Francisco, and they became quick friends on the 3-day excursion across the United States.                         

Neither of the two women were familiar with American food, so they had a tough time with meals. Alina was comfortable with ham & eggs, and that’s what they ate for the next three days.

The train pulled into Oakland and waiting for Alina were her two aunts, Sam’s sisters, Aunt Blanche and Aunt Jane. They had only corresponded by mail, they have never met one another. When Alina got off the train and looked around, she caught Blanche’s eye and knew it was her. Alina’s eyes and distinctive Boruchowska widows peak were all Blanche needed to see, before saying, “Alina is that you?” 

No one was sure if Alina was going to be normal or a nut case like another cousin, Bella who had recently made the voyage from Poland. Bella lost both her husband and son in the Holocaust and was deeply affected by this tragedy. Once all of the San Francisco relatives met Alina, they took her to her great Uncle Sam’s house where she then lived with him and his wife, Ann. Uncle Sam was quite wealthy. He lived in Pacific Heights, one of San Francisco’s finest neighborhoods. Sam would treat Alina like she was his daughter, but his wife Ann treated her more like Cinderella, giving Alina her daughter’s hand- me-downs. When they had company over, Alina had to eat in the kitchen. Sam truly loved Alina but Ann made every day uncomfortable. As soon as Joe and Blanca came from Europe, Alina planned to leave the house.

Blanca and Joe finally came to San Francisco a year after Alina and she immediately went to live with them in a small apartment off Irving Street. Uncle Sam was upset that Alina left but Alina wanted to move on with her life. Alina was quite popular and dated many young society guys, that she met through Sam and Jane’s social circuit.

Mayo Kerson

With the help of Aunt Jane, Alina went through dental hygienist school. Sam would drive her to and fro and she soon became a technician. Alina worked as a dental technician for about 1 ½ years before meeting her future husband, Mayo Kerson.  Alina went out with Mayo on a blind date set up thru her Aunt Jane, who learned about mayo while sitting next to a Mrs. Blume at a Hadassah meeting. Mrs. Blume asked Jane if she knew of any single women to introduce her friend Grace Kerson’s brother-in-law Mayo.  

The first date between Alina and Mayo was in March of 1949 and Alina was not impressed. She told Blanca that she didn't want to go out with Mayo a second time. Blanca insisted Mayo was a decent guy and that Alina should go out with him again, so she did.  On the second date they had a good time and eventually fell in love. On July 30th, 1949 they were married.

Joe became a traveling salesman selling optics, binoculars, and guns, and eventually started a wholesale business selling sporting goods and import-export wholesale hardware business. Blanca also worked in the business, and they had a daughter named Suzie. Mayo and Alina had two sons Perry and Rob. The two families were very close and spent almost every weekend together. Blanca and Joe followed a saying throughout their lives which was “not to look back, leave the past behind , and move forward with life.”  They became very successful and eventually relocated to Los Angeles living in Beverly Hills.  

 Alina and Mayo would become owners of G & M Sales, The Great Outdoors Store, which was located on Market & Gough Streets in San Francisco. Alina, Mayo ran the family business until eventually Perry and Rob took over running the store, which closed in 2004. The store was in business proudly serving San Francisco and the wider Bay Area for 49 years. Something for Alina to be proud of.

Epilogue

Alina Kerson is still living in San Francisco along with sons, Perry and Rob.  She has four grandchildren (Justin, Chelsea, Renee and Lily and two great grandchildren (Clae and Bodhi). After the death of her beloved Mayo she reunited with her old flame, Henry Weil, and they were a couple for 14 years until his passing in 2016.
Blanca and Joe remained in Beverly Hills until their passing. Their daughter Susie still lives there with her two children, Jessica and Michael, and three (almost 4) grandchildren (Jemma, Josie and Sophie).
Uncle Joe and Aunt Linka were executed in Czestochowa
Isador and Paula both died at Treblinka
Myer and Gucia both died at Treblinka
Isador’s Mother, sister Walda, and sister Hella died at Auschwitz
Isador’s brother Henry and his family died at Treblinka
Romek, Vera and George survived and relocated in South Africa
Mr. Witt lived his life with his daughter in Warsaw and died of natural causes
Linka lived in Warsaw and died of natural causes

I carry your heart with me (i carry it in my heart) i am never without it (anywhere i go you go, my dear.)

E.E. Cummings