6-3
Kiddush Cup
Auchsburg, Germany
The Prince family’s Kiddush cup is part of a set that includes a pair of candlesticks which dates back to the mid 1800’s. It was given to Yichizcal Prince, Benjamin’s great-great-great-great-grandfather, who lived in Auchsburg, Germany, while being married to Zelda Landau.
The cup is made of sterling silver with many balls embedded in the décor as a symbol of the cycle of life. It was originally used for Kiddush every week, together with the candlesticks. Baruch P., the family member whom Benjamin’s father is named after, changed its use to a Kos Shel Eliyahu (Elijah’s cup) for the Pessach Seder table, as he felt that every child in the family should have their own Kiddush cup when born, whether boy or girl.
The cup was also used as the traditional cup underneath the Chuppah for every P. child that married for over a hundred years, including Benjamin’s great-great-grandparents, their children, his uncles, and parents. It has traveled from Germany, where the P. family lived for over a hundred years, until the Holocaust forced the family to flee to America. It continues to be used every year at Benjamin’s family Seder table and was the Kiddush cup that was used at his parents’ wedding.
With G-d’s help, this cup will continue to be used for many years to come and continued to be passed down from generation to generation.
Bris Gown
New York
Julia's maternal great-great-aunt, Minnie Etra was born in New York and lived there throughout her entire life. Her parents had crossed the ocean from a small town in Poland in search of a better life where they could be Jewish without being persecuted. Her parents arrived on Ellis Island in 1888.
Minnie’s maiden name was Greenbaum, and she was married in New York on November 7, 1915, to Bernard Etra. When Minnie became pregnant; she knew she was going to have a boy. She decided to have the finest baby gown made for her son’s bris. The gown was made, and Minnie added some of the stitching herself.
Her son, Mordy, was born on January 25, 1918, during World War I. Mordy was the first baby to wear the gown and over the last 93 years, the gown has been passed down another four generations. It was most recently worn one year ago.
Julia and her family hope to use the gown for many years to come.
Sword
Germany
Leah’s paternal grandfather, Jack S., served in the American Army during World War II. At the time, the Nazis, a group of evil people who wanted to rule the world, controlled Germany. They managed to kill six million Jews. Since Jack was the last child of Leah’s great-grandmother, Leah S. (for whom she is named) still at home, Jack did not have to serve in the army when he was eighteen. Jack joined the army anyway. Jack took this sword off of a dead German soldier at an unknown time.
After the war was over, Jack sealed the sword so it could never hurt anyone. The sword is now sixty- five years old. It originally had a multicolor tassel, but it decomposed over time.
This object reminds Leah’s family about the evil that is in the world, and when presented with evil we have to step up like Leah’s brave grandfather, Jack S.
Kiddush Cup
Hungary, Kishcunhulush
These objects are Paul’s paternal great-grandfather Istvan H.’s Kiddush cup and family tree. Istvan H. was born in Hungary in the town of Kiskunhalas. The Kiddush cup was given to him by his father Samuel H. Samuel gave Istvan the Kiddush cup as a present.
Istvan carried the cup throughout World War II and he kept it concealed even while in the work camps. Then, after the war, Istvan moved to France and later to Canada. While living in Canada, he gave it to his son Paul who brought it to America.
This item is special to Paul H. and his family because it is a piece of H. family history. It even traveled around the world.
Paul chose the H. family tree as a second object. This family tree was made by Anne McDonnell H. Anne was born in Oakland, California in 1923. Anne began compiling information in 1985 when her cousin Michael H., age 92, was unable to identify all the family members from a 1928 wedding picture. Anne hoped that her work would be the beginning of a H. family tradition.
The H. family hopes to never lose track of whom they are and where they originated from.
Camera
United States
Jack Nussbaum was born in Antwerp, Belgium in 1935. As a young child during World War II, his family fled initially to France, then Cuba, and finally to the Upper West Side of New York City.
Despite this challenging childhood, he was able to cultivate his artistic talent as a painter, calligrapher, and photographer. Jacob was named after his very special Sabba, and Jacob enjoys hearing about the many hobbies his Sabba enjoyed. It is particularly inspirational for Jacob to recognize that despite the difficulties in his Sabba’s childhood, he saw beauty and joy all around him.
This camera, proudly displayed in Jacob’s home, is a wonderful reminder of Sabba’s creations. Photographs are an especially effective way for memories to live forever; the most special photographs in Jacob’s family are the family portraits his Sabba took of his siblings and of his mother as a youngster.
Gazing at this camera reminds Jacob and his family of their Sabba and his joy in capturing images and turning them into memories.
Atara
Bayonne, New Jersey
Julius’s paternal great-grandfather Rabbi Yaakov D. of Congregation Talmud Torah, Bayonne, New Jersey received a gift of a beautiful sterling silver atara. It is used as a decorative collar on the top of a tallis. It is not known who gave this atara to Rabbi D., but whenever he davened with his tallis, he wore it. This atara holds deep meaning for Julius and his family because Rabbi D. was a great man. He was a Torah scholar and a man who did many acts of chessed during the fifty years he led his congregation as rabbi. He is remembered as a real Tzadik.
Julius’s father Philip now has the honor of wearing the atara on his tallis. Julius hopes one day to have it passed on to him because he was named after his great -grandfather Yaakov.
Mortal and Pestle
Russia
Aviva's Heritage Fair object is her paternal great great-grandmother Chaya Bayla’s mortar and pestle. A mortar and pestle is an object that grinds whole spices into small pieces that are easier to cook with. Originally, it was transported from Russia to Canada. Later it was brought to New York in the early 1900’s. It was passed down from Chaya Bayla to Bayla Mandel to Aviva.
It is very important to Aviva’s family.
Tefillin
Poland
Jacob’s paternal grandfather, Shalom T., was born in Tomascow, Poland on December 14, 1922. His grandfather, Menachem T., bought these unique tefillin for his grandson, Shalom, for his Bar Mitzvah in 1935. Shalom and his family were poor, so he went to Lodz, Poland in 1936, where he worked at a factory so that he could send money back to his family. He brought his tefillin with him, and no matter how hard the conditions were in Lodz, he always davened wearing these tefillin.
A few years later, Shalom went back home to Tomascow. When the Germans captured Poland, many Jews, including the T. family, escaped to Siberia circa 1940. Shalom could not take everything from his house, but he made sure to take his tefillin with him. In Siberia, the winters were excruciating, and they had to work terribly hard. Shalom still davened everyday. After World War II ended, Shalom married, moved to America, and raised a family, continuing to daven every day with these tefillin.
In June, 1975, Shalom gave these tefillin to his son Harold, who has kept them ever since.
Anytime the T. family looks at the tefillin, they are reminded of all that happened to Shalom T. and that despite hard times, he still managed to daven, using these tefillin everyday.
The Holy Letter
Efroud, Morocco
This letter from the great Sephardic Rabbi Baba Sale to Yonathan`s great-grandfather, Yosef B., is written in Rashi script. The B. family received it so they could spread the Jewish laws in Gourama, Morocco. With this letter, Yonathan`s great-grandfather did spread the Jewish laws around the community by sharing it with everyone who was Jewish. This letter is important to Yonathan because the rabbi blessed the B. family, and it is a memory of the blessing. Yonathan`s family has passed it down for three generations.
This letter is very special to Yonathan and his family.
Photograph
America
Talya's item belongs to her maternal great-grandmother, Greta Weinman. Her items are photos of Greta and her son Norman Ruttner with Jackie Robinson. The photos were taken in 1951.
Talya's maternal grandfather, Norman Ruttner, and his mother were waiting outside after a game. While waiting, a rude man yelled at Talya's grandfather saying, "Who's you're father, Jackie Robinson?" Jackie then came out and gave them both a hug, which is when they took the picture.
Jackie Robinson was a personal friend of Greta’s. She had been a hostess at Grossinger’s Hotel in the Catskills and met Robinson when he trained at the hotel. Talya is very fortunate that she can see her great grandmother from time to time, but unfortunately, her grandfather is deceased.
This picture is a wonderful memento for Talya about her grandfather.
ID Card
Romania
Jessica’s maternal great-grandmother, Mali Schauer, received this ID card upon her arrival at a concentration camp called Copaigorod. Mali was born in Radauti, Romania, on September 7, 1900. She married Abraham Schauer and moved to Bucharest, Romania. During World War II, Mali and her entire family were among the Romanian Jews deported to Copaigorod which was located in Transnistria. In the camp, Mali was assigned to cook and clean for a German officer. She carried this ID card with her during her entire time in Copaigorod. The ID card provided information about Mali Schauer which included her name, birth date, marital status, occupation, name of camp, her residence, her ID number 10380 and more, all written in Romanian.
This ID card is a reminder to Jessica and her family of what their ancestor did in order to survive.
Yankee Signed Baseball
1952
In 1949 there were many Yankee legends such as Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, and Phil Rizzuto. Bobby’s baseball has the signatures of all of those players and many other great Yankees from that time. Bobby’s paternal great uncle Jake M. acquired it in the spring of 1949 while on vacation in Florida. He was a die hard sports fan at the time, and aspired to get most of the Yankee’s signatures. Everyday he would go down to the spring training in the St. Petersburg, Florida ballpark and get at least one person’s signature each day, so that he could acquire most of the Yankee’s autographs. He did this day after day, and once he had all the signatures, he gave the ball to his brother, Bobby’s grandfather, Bernie M.
When Bernie was given this gift, he did not know what its value was, and therefore used it to play. He even lost it for thirty years. Finally in 1999, the year Joe DiMaggio died, Bernie found the ball while rummaging through his belongings. He then quickly found out its value and gave it to his son, Bobby’s father, George M., because he did not want the ball to get lost again. George kept it in great condition and eventually gave it to Bobby Miller, who has kept it safe.
Today, when Bobby sees the ball, it reminds him of his family heritage.
Letters From The Government
New York, New York 1944- 1946
N\A
These letters and certificates belonged to Jeremy's paternal great grandmother Betty Rosenblatt. They were sent to her from the government in recognition of her selling and buying war bonds during World War II. One of the letters she received was for buying a war bond on the very day she became a citizen of the United States!
A war bond is an amount of money you give to the government during a time of war that they use to buy and create weapons, food, and war materials in order to win a war. Later the government pays you back more money than you gave them. That's what Jeremy's great-grandmother bought and sold to help protect her new country, The United States of America. These letters and certificates were sent to her throughout World War II to thank her for her hard work in helping the war effort.
These letters and certificates are a reminder to Jeremy of all the amazing things his great grandmother did during the war.
The Cherished Fashion Designs
Berlin, Germany
Katie’s maternal great-grandfather Kurt Ehrenfreund was a fashion designer during the 1930’s and 1940’s in Berlin, Germany and Amsterdam, Holland. By the time Kurt Ehrenfreund was 20 years old, he was already very successful and well-known as a women’s haute couture fashion designer.
During the Holocaust some Nazi officers came to him and requested that he make special uniforms with fur due to the cold weather. He cleverly replied, saying that he couldn’t simply make the uniforms without his “experienced furrier tailors” who were already deported to concentration camps. The Nazis agreed and allowed Kurt to make a list of people he needed to help make the uniforms. Instead, Kurt compiled a list of untrained friends and acquaintances that he merely wanted to save. He strategized to help some escape their inevitable deaths. Kurt’s selflessness ultimately made him a hero. After the war he was able to rebuild his fashion empire and become one of the leading European fashion designers of that era.
Kurt’s fashion designs still remain a treasured heirloom of the Ehrenfreund family.
Book
Poland
Richard’s great grandfather, Leon Finkelstein, a survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto and Treblinka death camp acquired this album depicting pictures of the destruction of the Warsaw Ghetto and several other ghettos. The pictures show the killing of innocent Jews, men, women, and children. It also shows pictures of the tragedies that occurred in the Auschwitz death camp. Richard’s grandmother, Diane Krumholz, child survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto, received this book from her father, Leon Finkelstein.
This book was published and illustrated in 1946, right after the liberation of the Jewish people in Europe.
Umbrella Stand
Germany
This beautifully decorated umbrella stand originally belonged to Ariel’s maternal great-great-aunt Hella Landau and her husband Yehoshua Landau. Hella purchased this special umbrella stand in Germany, circa 1880. They were fleeing Germany from Nazi persecution and sent their belongings, including the umbrella stand to family that had already fled to the United States. Their train, which was headed to a port in France to catch a boat to the United States, was blown up by the Nazis. They never made it but their belongings did. This umbrella stand now belongs to the maternal grandparents of Ariel, Vita and Michael Naiman.
This umbrella stand adorns their living room and serves as a constant reminder of their family history.
Certificate
Poland
Yeshaya Berl, the paternal great grandfather of Kailee was born in 1891. Yeshaya was born and raised in a town in Poland called Kolbuszowa. Kolbuszowa was a small town. Today Jewish Kolbuszowa is gone. Before World War II it was a small Polish town of 4,000 people, half Polish Catholics, and half Jews. Yeshaya lived in a house that was made of red brick. The house was on “one corner of the marketplace and it was under this street lamp (one of the few in town) that political discussions were held”.
Saadia S. the father of Kailee and grandson of Yeshaya Berl went to Kolbuszowa in the year 2000. When he went he was directed through the streets step by step in order to get to Yeshaya’s house by Naftali Salsitz cousin of Yeshaya Berl on his cell phone from America. Naftali also lived in Kolbuszowa. The walls of the house were so old that Saadia was able to take a brick from the walls.
When Yeshaya was about 15 he came to America to work in a clothing factory and many other jobs. This work certificate had to be showed to Yeshaya’s boss in the clothing factory in order to get paid. Soon after Yeshaya moved to America, he married Devora Smith the paternal great-grandmother of Kailee S., who Kailee Rivkah Devora was named after.
Yeshaya died of old age in 1968 when he was 77. He died in America surrounded by his family and friends. Yeshaya’s family loved him. Liam Eliyahu Yeshaya, Kailee’s brother is named after his great-grandfather Yeshaya Berl. Whoever knew him would’ve said that he was a great man and was lucky to have died at such an old age.
Although some families cannot trace far back in their family history, those who can should be grateful to be able to learn about their families.
Mortar and Pestle
Poland
Yehoshua's maternal great grandfather Max Grossman was a pharmacist. Max Grossman was born on November 22, 1906. Max Grossman's Hebrew name was Moshe Aharon. Max Grossman grew up in Brooklyn with five siblings. He was the middle child. This is his mortar and pestle.
Max Grossman went to Brooklyn College of Pharmacy and graduated in 1928. In 1935 Max Grossman married Renee Kafka. They had two children Susan and Judy. He opened his store named Sumner McDonough Pharmacy. The store was named Sumner McDonough Pharmacy because the store was on the corner of Sumner and MacDonough Streets. Jackie Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers lived down the block from the store. Max Grossman and Professor Abraham Kreiser were the founding members of the Jewish Pharmaceutical Society (JPSA). They enlisted as members almost all the Jewish pharmacists in the New York area. Professor Kreiser went on to head the pharmacy school at Hebrew University. The society raised money for a pharmacy school at Hebrew University in Israel. He was also President of the Brooklyn Retail Druggist's Association. He often went to Albany to meet with the elected legislators to convince them to enact laws beneficial to retail pharmacists.
As president of the of the Retail Druggists Association he did wield some power and lobbied for his causes.
Ring
Brooklyn
This item is Rachel’s cocktail ring. A cocktail ring is usually only worn to a special occasion. This ring was her grandmother Bella Weisblum’s, then her mother Debbi H's, and now it belongs to Rachel. Bella’s family was poor, and when they came to America before the Holocaust there was no jewelry for her to inherit. So she bought this ring herself while she and Rachel’s grandfather Pinky were dating. Later on the same day, Pinky proposed to Bella.
Years later, when their daughter Debbi was born, the ring was passed down to her. When Rachel turned ten, the ring was then passed down to her. She keeps it safe so that when she has a very special occasion to attend she will wear it.
This ring is very precious to Rachel’s family and hopefully it will be passed down and treasured for many more generations.
Otoscope
United States
Bessie Marks Baker, Noam’s maternal great-grandmother, was one of the few female doctors of her time. She was born in Columbus, Ohio, in 1915, the oldest in her family. Her parents wanted all three children to go into the medical practice, and all three children did. This was so remarkable that the Columbus Jewish Historical Society wrote an article about the family, from which some of the information here is drawn.
Bessie was a good student at East High School, where she excelled in science, arts, literature, and philosophy. She graduated Ohio State University, earning Bachelors’ and Masters’ degrees. She went to New York to work in a laboratory, and then returned home to attend Medical School at Ohio State, where she received and used this otoscope. She was one of only three women in her medical school graduating class. Although she didn’t complete her residency, Bessie Marks Baker worked for the state of Ohio in her capacity as a physician. Although being a doctor was important to her, she felt that her family was more important. When it seemed impossible to be both a medical resident and a mother she put her family’s needs first.
Noam chose this otoscope because it is an object associated with his great-grandmother, for whom his younger brother is named.
Noam’s mom was always proud that her grandmother was a doctor, but she especially remembers her for making the best French toast ever.
Iron
New York
In the early years of the 20th century, Mrs. Shayna Bryna Wilijansky, Emma’s maternal great-great-grandmother, became a widow in Bialystok, Russia. In order to support her eight children, she took in laundry. When she immigrated to the United States in 1916, she continued working as a laundress.
Shayna Bryna took great pride in her work. Laundry, before electrical appliances, was a common, yet difficult job. Shayna Bryna ironed the washed clothes with this object, which is a combination of iron and wood that comes apart. The bottom iron section would be put in the stove to heat up. Then the wooden handle would be attached to it, and it could be used to iron clothes. The problem was that the iron would cool off and have to be put back into the stove again and again. That means it would take Shayna Bryna about four times as long to iron one shirt than it takes someone today using an electric iron.
Shayna Bryna felt it was important that her children not only studied hard and helped around the house, but that they always looked clean and neat. The Wilijansky children were known to be the best dressed kids in the neighborhood. One reason was certainly because she carefully ironed their clothes. When Shayna Bryna passed away, she left the iron to her daughter, Esther Hinda, Emma’s great grandmother for whom she is named. Esther, in turn, passed it down to her granddaughter, Nechama, Emma’s mother.
It is a heart-warming reminder of their very special great-great grandmother.