What’s Your Story?
Family History Day is June 14th and it seems like a great time to tell my family’s story, which is now part of my story. The ties that bind my family together go way beyond DNA; they are about a shared family history that, once again, reminds me that no matter where we are and where we come from, our stories should never die.
In 1913, my grandmother left her family behind and came to America from Poland to pursue a better life. She met and married my grandfather and they had 11 children. I have a lot of first cousins - with 27 out of 29 on my mother’s side! I have been lucky enough to grow up with some of them and see others at major family events; there are even some I have never met. Little did I know that 2021 would introduce more family that I never knew existed. Their story is one you read about, or see in the movies.
In February of this year, my aunt in the United States received a letter from a gentleman in France who said that he is related to my grandmother. He is, in fact, my mother’s first cousin. He found my aunt’s information through a genealogist in Poland. In 1929, this cousin and his family fled from Poland because of rising anti-Jewish persecution. They went to Paris since, at the time, it was considered a welcome place for Polish Jews. This was a shock to all of us here in the United States because we were told that most of my grandmother’s relatives died in Poland, well before World War II.
Our newly found cousins survived the unthinkable. During one of the infamous arrests of registered Jews, their father (my grandmother’s brother) was deported to Auschwitz and never returned. Young children at the time, my mother’s cousins were sent to the countryside to live with a widow. After a while, they were joined by their mother and young sister and moved to a village to live with a family who had a spare room. No one knew their story or their religion. Due to the laws in France at the time, they were required to register with the local police. Fearing for their lives, they had no choice but to comply and reveal themselves to their hosts. When the French hosts found out the truth - that they were hiding Jews - they vowed to protect the family, and as word spread, so did all the villagers in town. In 1994, this courageous French family that hid my mother’s cousins was honored with the Righteous Among Nations Medal from Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center. You may find my family’s full story here. Through the Righteous Among Nations database, you may search for rescuers and survivors of the Holocaust.
Here is a book that goes into this in further detail:
When the war was over, my cousins returned to Paris only to find their home ransacked and that they were destitute. Out of necessity, the children were sent to an orphanage where they would remain for four years. Once reunited with their mother, they learned she had been receiving letters from my grandmother (her sister-in-law) about her family in the United States. Their curiosity about their American family began and never left them.
My French cousins knew about their American aunt and her 11 children but were never able to find any contact information until now. Seventy years later, their story and their suffering have bonded all of us in a way that one can never put into words. They have written down every detail in the hopes of documenting the inspiring account of their journey. We now have had a few Zoom reunions, and are looking forward to an in-person reunion one day in France.
Had my grandmother not come to America, I most likely would not be here to tell this story at all. I have always been of the mindset to “bear witness” to stories that should never be forgotten. Is it a coincidence that my favorite book as a child and to this day is “Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl”? I have never forgotten her story, and I hope that your family’s story is told and documented for generations to come.
Here are some titles you may request through our catalog with similar stories to my family:
In 1913, my grandmother left her family behind and came to America from Poland to pursue a better life. She met and married my grandfather and they had 11 children. I have a lot of first cousins - with 27 out of 29 on my mother’s side! I have been lucky enough to grow up with some of them and see others at major family events; there are even some I have never met. Little did I know that 2021 would introduce more family that I never knew existed. Their story is one you read about, or see in the movies.
In February of this year, my aunt in the United States received a letter from a gentleman in France who said that he is related to my grandmother. He is, in fact, my mother’s first cousin. He found my aunt’s information through a genealogist in Poland. In 1929, this cousin and his family fled from Poland because of rising anti-Jewish persecution. They went to Paris since, at the time, it was considered a welcome place for Polish Jews. This was a shock to all of us here in the United States because we were told that most of my grandmother’s relatives died in Poland, well before World War II.
Our newly found cousins survived the unthinkable. During one of the infamous arrests of registered Jews, their father (my grandmother’s brother) was deported to Auschwitz and never returned. Young children at the time, my mother’s cousins were sent to the countryside to live with a widow. After a while, they were joined by their mother and young sister and moved to a village to live with a family who had a spare room. No one knew their story or their religion. Due to the laws in France at the time, they were required to register with the local police. Fearing for their lives, they had no choice but to comply and reveal themselves to their hosts. When the French hosts found out the truth - that they were hiding Jews - they vowed to protect the family, and as word spread, so did all the villagers in town. In 1994, this courageous French family that hid my mother’s cousins was honored with the Righteous Among Nations Medal from Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center. You may find my family’s full story here. Through the Righteous Among Nations database, you may search for rescuers and survivors of the Holocaust.
Gilbert says, according to Jewish tradition, "Whoever saves one life, it is as if he saved the entire world." Non-Jews who helped save Jewish lives during World War II are designated Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem, the Holocaust archive in Jerusalem. In The Righteous, distinguished historian Sir Martin Gilbert, through extensive interviews, explores the courage of those - throughout Germany and in every occupied country from Norway to Greece, from the Atlantic to the Baltic – that took incredible risks to help Jews whose fate would have been sealed without them. Indeed, many lost their lives for their efforts.
When the war was over, my cousins returned to Paris only to find their home ransacked and that they were destitute. Out of necessity, the children were sent to an orphanage where they would remain for four years. Once reunited with their mother, they learned she had been receiving letters from my grandmother (her sister-in-law) about her family in the United States. Their curiosity about their American family began and never left them.
My French cousins knew about their American aunt and her 11 children but were never able to find any contact information until now. Seventy years later, their story and their suffering have bonded all of us in a way that one can never put into words. They have written down every detail in the hopes of documenting the inspiring account of their journey. We now have had a few Zoom reunions, and are looking forward to an in-person reunion one day in France.
Had my grandmother not come to America, I most likely would not be here to tell this story at all. I have always been of the mindset to “bear witness” to stories that should never be forgotten. Is it a coincidence that my favorite book as a child and to this day is “Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl”? I have never forgotten her story, and I hope that your family’s story is told and documented for generations to come.
Here are some titles you may request through our catalog with similar stories to my family:
A Good Place to Hide: How One French Village Saved Thousands of Lives in World War II
by Peter Grose
Village of Secrets: Defying the Nazis in Vichy France
by Caroline Moorehead
The Mercer County Library System has the following books to get your family history search started:
This MCLS database allows you to conduct your research from home:
Heritage Quest This is a comprehensive treasury of American genealogical resources that will help New Jersey residents find their ancestors.
Or, come into the library during our open hours, and start researching with Ancestry Library. Ancestry® Library Edition delivers billions of records in census data, vital records, directories, photos, and more.
Here are some other websites to try:
Family History/Genealogy National Archives.gov
DNA searches 23 and me and Ancestry DNA
Free online family tree maker Family Echo
by Peter Grose
Village of Secrets: Defying the Nazis in Vichy France
by Caroline Moorehead
The Mercer County Library System has the following books to get your family history search started:
- Unofficial Guide to FamilySearch.org: How to Find Your Family History on the World's Largest Free Genealogy Website by Dana McCullough
- Here’s their website - Familysearch.org
- Unofficial Guide to Ancestry.com: How to Find Your Family History on the #1 Genealogy Website by Nancy Hendrickson
- Genealogy for Beginners by Katherine Pennavaria
- It's All Relative: Adventures Up and Down the World's Family Tree by A. J. Jacobs
- Tracing Your Twentieth-Century Ancestors: A Guide for Family Historians by Karen L. Bali
This MCLS database allows you to conduct your research from home:
Heritage Quest This is a comprehensive treasury of American genealogical resources that will help New Jersey residents find their ancestors.
Or, come into the library during our open hours, and start researching with Ancestry Library. Ancestry® Library Edition delivers billions of records in census data, vital records, directories, photos, and more.
Here are some other websites to try:
Family History/Genealogy National Archives.gov
DNA searches 23 and me and Ancestry DNA
Free online family tree maker Family Echo
- by Ilene, Robbinsville Branch
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