Teacher". There were many punishments, like standing in the
corner. The Hebrew school, in comparison, was pleasant and easy-going. Most of
the students at the Polish school were Christian. Tuition was high and you had
to pass a lot of exams in order to be accepted. I had Jewish friends in every
class. Jews did not make friends with the Christians, who were anti-Semites.
Despite that, they rarely bothered us. Classes were not co-ed, they had either
boys or girls. In the Hebrew school the classes were co-ed. They weren't strict
there, so we all went there willingly even though it also had exams and report
cards. This was the only Hebrew school in the whole region. All the children
who lived at our house went to both schools, the Polish and the Hebrew."
I
knew much less about my father's family. My mother never told me anything, and
I didn’t ask. My only source of information was my Aunt Zelda. Zelda Finkelman,
Liebling after she married Joel. She was often around at my father's home.
Zelda's grandfather, Mechel, and my grandfather Itzig were brothers. When
Zelda's father died in 1921 when she was only three, she and her mother and
sisters moved in with my grandfather at 279 Szpitalna St. Zelda and her husband
Joel were among the few who survived the Holocaust.
Zelda's
sister, Zanka, was my mother's classmate and she was the one who introduced
them. "... Come with me to Betar, it will be a chance to be around
Junio... it's the best way to get to know him without anyone being the
wiser..." my mother told me. Even after my grandfather died in 1933 Zelda
stayed with them. From Zelda I learned how strict and unyielding my
grandparents were: "The Finkelmans were always very stubborn, they never
let anything go – not in business and not in their personal life at
home..." The Finkelmans were Zionists. My Uncle Chaskel who studied law
joined a group of immigrants that was known as the Student Aliya and immigrated
to Palestine in 1920. After he came down with malaria he returned to Chortkow,
got married and immigrated to Colombia inspired by stories of South America and
Colombia from a fellow Zionist pioneer (halutz) who had travelled the world.
My Aunt Simka was the girls’ coordinator in Hashomer during the early '20s. She
immigrated to Palestine in 1935 and returned to Chortkow about a year later.
Simka continued in her Zionist activism as the on-hand doctor for many youth
group activities. My father, the youngest son, was a leader in Betar and lived
up to the movement's vision by immigrating to Palestine in 1932. Zelda told me
that their family originally came from the town of Jagielnica. Like all
Finkelmans my grandfather and his family were lumber merchants. They were
well-to-do which allowed them to provide all their children with higher
education. Zelda told me that my father was the mischievous one. He was always
athletic and played a lot of sports. One of her favorite stories was how he
came downstairs one day all the way from the top floor walking on his hands.
Apparently, my grandmother had never seen anyone walking on their hands before,
let alone doing so on the stairs. She tried tilting her head to correct the
upside-down image, and when she saw my father holding the stairs above his head
she cried that he was possessed and fainted.
I
first met Zelda as a teenager, when she visited Israel. I was immediately taken
with her, and whenever I traveled to the States for work I would visit her if I
could. She and Joel (Lolo) would always be happy to have me and provide me some
more information about our family. And so we spent hours, as she helped me
write down a detailed family tree, or told me with incredible candor about what
she went through during the Holocaust. How she escaped the horrors, how she
hid in a bunker and lost her family. Zelda let me read the diary she wrote
during the months in hiding, and was happy to answer questions. I regret all
the questions I didn't ask, and have no doubt that I missed a
corner. The Hebrew school, in comparison, was pleasant and easy-going. Most of
the students at the Polish school were Christian. Tuition was high and you had
to pass a lot of exams in order to be accepted. I had Jewish friends in every
class. Jews did not make friends with the Christians, who were anti-Semites.
Despite that, they rarely bothered us. Classes were not co-ed, they had either
boys or girls. In the Hebrew school the classes were co-ed. They weren't strict
there, so we all went there willingly even though it also had exams and report
cards. This was the only Hebrew school in the whole region. All the children
who lived at our house went to both schools, the Polish and the Hebrew."
I
knew much less about my father's family. My mother never told me anything, and
I didn’t ask. My only source of information was my Aunt Zelda. Zelda Finkelman,
Liebling after she married Joel. She was often around at my father's home.
Zelda's grandfather, Mechel, and my grandfather Itzig were brothers. When
Zelda's father died in 1921 when she was only three, she and her mother and
sisters moved in with my grandfather at 279 Szpitalna St. Zelda and her husband
Joel were among the few who survived the Holocaust.
Zelda's
sister, Zanka, was my mother's classmate and she was the one who introduced
them. "... Come with me to Betar, it will be a chance to be around
Junio... it's the best way to get to know him without anyone being the
wiser..." my mother told me. Even after my grandfather died in 1933 Zelda
stayed with them. From Zelda I learned how strict and unyielding my
grandparents were: "The Finkelmans were always very stubborn, they never
let anything go – not in business and not in their personal life at
home..." The Finkelmans were Zionists. My Uncle Chaskel who studied law
joined a group of immigrants that was known as the Student Aliya and immigrated
to Palestine in 1920. After he came down with malaria he returned to Chortkow,
got married and immigrated to Colombia inspired by stories of South America and
Colombia from a fellow Zionist pioneer (halutz) who had travelled the world.
My Aunt Simka was the girls’ coordinator in Hashomer during the early '20s. She
immigrated to Palestine in 1935 and returned to Chortkow about a year later.
Simka continued in her Zionist activism as the on-hand doctor for many youth
group activities. My father, the youngest son, was a leader in Betar and lived
up to the movement's vision by immigrating to Palestine in 1932. Zelda told me
that their family originally came from the town of Jagielnica. Like all
Finkelmans my grandfather and his family were lumber merchants. They were
well-to-do which allowed them to provide all their children with higher
education. Zelda told me that my father was the mischievous one. He was always
athletic and played a lot of sports. One of her favorite stories was how he
came downstairs one day all the way from the top floor walking on his hands.
Apparently, my grandmother had never seen anyone walking on their hands before,
let alone doing so on the stairs. She tried tilting her head to correct the
upside-down image, and when she saw my father holding the stairs above his head
she cried that he was possessed and fainted.
I
first met Zelda as a teenager, when she visited Israel. I was immediately taken
with her, and whenever I traveled to the States for work I would visit her if I
could. She and Joel (Lolo) would always be happy to have me and provide me some
more information about our family. And so we spent hours, as she helped me
write down a detailed family tree, or told me with incredible candor about what
she went through during the Holocaust. How she escaped the horrors, how she
hid in a bunker and lost her family. Zelda let me read the diary she wrote
during the months in hiding, and was happy to answer questions. I regret all
the questions I didn't ask, and have no doubt that I missed a
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