Rebecca Gratz to Anna Maria Boswell Shelby Gratz - July 06, 1857

Helene Goodman, formerly Henia Flint, was born in Lodz, Poland in 1913 into an orthodox family. She studied piano at the Warsaw Conservatory posing as a non-Jew, and got her diploma in 1935. She briefly describes how the German invasion affected Polish Jews. In 1939 Helene and her family had to move to the Lodz Ghetto. Her father was brutally beaten by the KRIPO (Kriminalpolizei), lost his mind, and later died. She witnessed Polish-German cooperation, and the murder of Jewish orphans in the ghetto. Helene and her mother were transported to Auschwitz in August 1944, when the ghetto was liquidated. She describes the dehumanizing arrival process. During a “selection” by Dr. Mengele, she was separated from her mother and never saw her again. She is the lone survivor of her family. Helene was forced to play the piano for the camp commander’s birthday party and was stabbed repeatedly when she was too stunned to perform. Her wounds were not treated. A Jewish KAPO put her on a transport to Hainichen (a subcamp of Flossenbürg), near Chemnitz, Germany to save her life. Helene worked as a slave laborer at Framowerke, an ammunition factory. She describes living and working conditions. The supervisor was Gertrude Becker, an SS woman who was extremely cruel. She describes the effects of near starvation, how she tried to cope, and her acts of sabotage. Helene describes a Deathmarch at the end of April 1945, guarded by SS officers who took off their uniforms and fled once they arrived at Theresienstadt. She was liberated by the Soviet army May 9, 1945. Soviet women doctors treated the survivors. American soldiers took her to a quarantine camp at Landsberg am Lech where she tried to recover from the physical and emotional after effects of her experiences. She describes her post-war life in Regensburg, Germany after she met and married her husband, Jacob Gottlieb, including a frightening act of antisemitism and Zionist activities.. They lived in Regensburg, Germany until they immigrated to the United States. She concludes with her personal reflections on the Holocaust.

This document comprises two fax transmissions. The first fax, dated October 6, 2003, is from Tomáš Kudrna of the Nadace Dagmar a Václava Havlových VIZE 97 (Dagmar and Václav Havel Foundation VIZE 97). It is a request for the mailing address of Mr. Elie Wiesel, as the foundation wishes to send him a letter from Mr. Václav Havel. The second fax, dated June 27, 2003, is a letter from Elie Wiesel, University Professor at Boston University, addressed to President Václav Havel. Wiesel thanks Havel for an invitation but expresses his current inability to accept due to health reasons. He explains that he recently returned from a journey to the Mideast and Europe, which he had to interrupt in Athens due to his health, and is now recuperating. He asks Havel to convey his regrets and explanation to Robert Reich. Wiesel concludes by wishing Havel and Dagmar a healthy and joyous summer. The letter is signed by Elie Wiesel and indicates it was dictated but not read.

Rebecca writes with concern to her brother Ben after he joined the Washington Guards. She also informs him of their sister Sarah's (Sally) poor health and how the war is affecting their friends in Virginia.

Rebecca writes to her friend Maria, expressing sympathies after Charles, Maria's son, lost his leg. She also shares news of family members' health issues and Philadelphia's social scene.