Holocaust Survivors

Roza is the happiest 103-year-old Holocaust Survivor we know. She loves to visit with us every month when we drop off her bag of food at her tiny apartment. The heat of the day comes in through her window, right to her bed. Her curtains didn't keep the heat out as much as she wanted. She needed help, and we were there with willing hands. She called us angels as we hung up a sunshade over the window. She smiled and clapped, so thrilled over the simplest of tasks, but to her, it wasn't simple. There was no way this little lady could have reached high enough to hang up the shade. The Bridges for Peace team is so grateful to be able to give more than food. With the visits, we are able to check in on our elderly Holocaust survivors to see that they are okay and have what they need, and it brings them socialization. Roza knows she is cared for and is not forgotten.

Shalom, This is Clara. She has the most contagious smile and undeniable light in her eyes. Despite the evil she’s experienced, she holds the belief that there is good inside every person. She loves people so well, and says her love comes from Elohim. She does not dwell on the awful memories from her life, but instead, shares the good. She was number one on her volleyball team, she became an engineer and headed a project to build a dam. She has pictures from all of these moments along with photos of friends she hasn’t forgotten. It takes a special kind of strength to choose to remember the good, and she has it. Such an inspiration! Clara is visited every month by a team of volunteers from Bridges for Peace and she receives her monthly food parcel and a birthday gift.

I am Danil S. K., born in Kharkov, Ukraine in 1936. My mother, Sarah, was the youngest of 13 children in her religious family. My father's name was Semyon K. My father was arrested in 1938 and shot in the same year. He was accused of passing data to Polish intelligence. The war began in 1941. My mom and I were running. We rode on platforms from the Germans and arrived in Kazakhstan. At that time, we did not know where my father was, as the NKVD (the interior ministry of the Soviet Union) was hiding what had happened to him. We were very well received by the Russian family in Kazakhstan, with whom we lived. Mom was working at the time, so I wasn't hungry. On August 23, 1943, Kharkov was liberated. My mother and I went there via Moscow. She left me sitting in Moscow at the Kursk railway station, and she ran to the NKVD to find out what was wrong with my father. At the time, she didn't find anything. In 1961, I got married and continued to study at a technical school. Then my two sons were born. My youngest son, Stanislav, now lives in Israel. He worked at the hospital for 30 years. Now he is a teacher. My eldest son, Vadim, is living in Ukraine. In 1991, my youngest son moved to Israel at the age of 19, on the recommendation of a doctor in Kharkov. He had diabetes, and he was advised to go to Israel so that he could be cured here. That's what happened, but he also contributed here too. We came to Israel after him, in 2000. For 22 years I was a volunteer at Yad LaKashish. I brought new ideas and I was very well liked there. I am the announcer of a radio station in Netanya. Five countries of the world are listening to me I am eternally grateful to Bridges for Peace, for your work, for your participation, for your attitude.