May 15th, 2008
The Will To Survive
Through various means during World War II, some Jewish people found ways of going into hiding to avoid the Nazis’ death sentence, and there were also those who were able to escape from their grip. Some were completely on their own whereas others received varying amounts of assistance from people they knew or strangers.
About 10,000 children were able to find refuge in Great Britain through the Kindertransport, which is a German word meaning “transportation of children.” During the transports, which were held from December of 1938 to September of 1939, children left their parents to eventually live in foster homes.
Fresh Meadows resident Ellen Alexander, who was born in Berlin in 1929, went on the Kindertransport with her older sister Ursula. As a 10-year-old, she considered it a big adventure. She and her sister stayed with a couple previously unknown to the family throughout the duration of the war.
Another way that some of the Jews tried to escape the horrors going on in their home countries was by obtaining passage on ships to go to other countries. Known as “ships to nowhere,” they faced many problems, including poor conditions and overcrowding. Many of the ships were denied entry into various ports of call and many lives were lost on these ships.
Esther Katz, now a resident of Hillcrest, was only three and a half when she and her mother boarded the Navemar en route to the United States. Although the boat was built with just a two dozen passenger cabins, it instead held over 1,200 during the voyage. Katz said that her mother was sick the entire time and that, as a child, she was preoccupied with making friends. When they got off the Navemar, they were met by Katz’s father and settled in New York City.
“This was one of the last boats that left Germany,” Katz said. “It was luck, a miracle.”
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