Jessica Leuze

MaI miss your hugs everyday. I can only hope that you are in a better place, and are looking down at Peter and I with loving eyes. This book was inspired by your love for us, and I can’t wait to see you again someday. We have a lot to catch up on.I love you.

PeteI’m sorry for being MIA during football season. I love you!

MorganWords can never express how appreciative I am to have you in my life, especially with all you have done for me. I wouldn’t have been able to do all that I’m doing now without your motivation and your love for me. I hope I inspire and motivate you the way you have done for me. Olive juice!

AngelaThis semester was a living hell, but I am so thankful that you were there for me and pushed me to do better. I don’t think you realize just how much you influence students, or see how they all look up to you with such admiration. You inspire more than you’ll ever know. I’m so glad to have met you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

To all those whom I did not mention, my apologies, but that doesn’t mean I’m not appreciative of your input and help along the way. I love you all. Thank you for your support.

I’m not sure when I first heard my mother speak these grand tales about my grandparents, but I remember them – vividly. My grandparents were like legends in my eyes, living a fairy-tale life in Poland, then being cast out into a world of darkness and turmoil. As fear knocked at their door, love and shear stubbornness helped them make their way back to one another. This cluster of illustrated stories are all I know of my grandmother as she died before I was born, and this was a way for me to get to know my quiet and shy grandfather before he had passed as well.

My mother told me about my grandparents in such a way that immortalized them in my eyes. The love and admiration I have for them is truly immense. What better way to pay homage to my lovely mother than to take these fond memories of us talking when I was young, and put their stories, our stories – on paper to be documented forever.

These stories told to me by my mother prompted the idea for this book, but it was taken to the next level by my fascination of folklore in these modern times. After taking a Myth and Folklore class, and really going over the stories I had heard primarily from my mother, it was becoming apparent in my eyes that everyone’s family is made up of folklore.

Not any one family is alike. Some have different religious beliefs, if any. Others may have a way of communicating in public, such as a whistle, in order to find each other in a crowded venue.

Not many individuals take the time to write down their family’s history, their family’s quirks, so when it’s passed down by word of mouth, the stories, these historical facts, somehow morph into these beautifully kept ideas of past generations.

This first volume is only the stepping stone to uncover more family folklore that is spread throughout America. Family tradition and story should be kept sacred and dear, and by compiling information and data from different families, I will be able to assemble a collection of loved memories to share with the world.

This first volume is for the passed, those who didn’t have a voice then, and for future generations. Enjoy!

14

Hi, the name’s Katie. I’m a simple girl, really. A cute little Polish girl with chubby cheeks. I grew up in a small urban town in New Jersey where I lived for a good part of my life. I love the arts and the outdoors, and I have an older brother.

I wasn’t really allowed out all that often, but I did have my imagination to keep me busy. Well, that and a mother who loved to tell me of myfamily’s history.

My mother, Marisha, taught me quite a few things about how to deal with life by telling me of the situations my grandparents had to endure. She had grown up in military barracks in England and they were considered refugees. I remember her telling me how my grandmother would sweep the floor, a dirt floor, just to have some sort of normalcy in their lives.

My mother was always so nurturing and caring, everything she said had so much weight and substance in my eyes. When she would tell me the stories of my grandparents, I could see pieces of her in the stories – and then I started to see myself.

In a perfect world, my mother and her sister would’ve been born in Poland on my grandparent’s farm, but because of certain world changing events, my grandparents properties and lives were thrown into chaos.

In the real world, my grandparents struggled through many of life’s changes and endured hardships we could never really understand unless we lived through them ourselves. This is their story.

18

My mother never questioned my grandmother, but that little bit of conversation always stuck with her, like it has stuck with me. Regardless if we are or aren’t Jewish, it’s always been prevalent in my mind, and it’s a bit of history I may never know of my family.

The fact that Nowy Sacz was primarily a Jewish community would later lead a horrific number of murders at the hands of Nazi Germany. I’m not hear to embellish those facts, though; there’s a love story going on!Now, Nowy Sacz was a beautiful place, full of mountains and rolling farmlands as far as the eye could see. The town center was rich in color and life. Draperies from storefronts and windows would flow gracefully in the wind on warm spring mornings. One could always hear music playing, and dances were just the normal thing to attend at that time – and let me tell you, Polish people like to dance. You could alwaysfind someone dancing in the town square – it was just a happytime all around.

Let’s start this story off like any good story would, in a beautiful land far far away. There lived a striking young man and a beautiful woman who lived in a small farming town called Nowy Sacz; it’s a southwestern town located in Poland.

Poland, as history will tell you, had a dense population of Jews residing there. This is particularly poignant for me, because from stories told to me, my family may be, in fact, Jewish. When my mother was young, she had told me a story of when she and my grandmother were walking home from the butcher one day. They had passed a synagogue, and my mother glanced at it in passing. Abruptly, my grandmother, Lucy, stopped them both in their tracks. She swiftly told my mother that they were in fact, Catholic, not Jewish. “Don’t ever forget that, no matter what anyone asks!”

20

Lucy, my grandmother, was a farmer’s daughter. She knew how to tend to the land and she loved it. She was said to have a great personality but could spit nails at a moments notice; I suppose that runs in the family. Nothing would please her more than being out in the fields picking ripe vegetables or tilling the fields that her family owned. Lucy’s family was by no means rich, but they where very smart when it came to growing a fertile crop.

Lucy was the oldest of 7 siblings, which would later turn into a sad statistic. You see, Lucy was one of three siblings who actually survived the Holocaust, but we’ll get to that in a little bit.

And Frank, my grandfather, he was a looker! From all of the stories that my mother told me, he was hot to trot. Women would line up both up and down the streets just to talk with him, but his sights were solely set on Lucy. He, too, was the oldest of his siblings, the number I am not sure of, and he was all about my grandmother. Even though he was 10 years Lucy’s senior, Lucy’s parents were more than happy to have them wed.

Though, from what my mother would tell me, it took Lucy a while to be okay with Frank courting her. Lucy, you see, was very stubborn and independent. She never saw herself needing to rely on a man, but her family wanted her to marry Frank.

Back then, there were benefits with certain families being bonded by the marriage of a son and daughter, but she wasn’t having any of that nonsense. She was a smart, sophisticated, modern woman of the early 1930’s. Though, when all was said and done; when Lucy looked at how his family could help her family financially, she was more open to the idea of the marriage.

She eventually let her guard down enough to let Frank into her heart, and they finally wed. The wedding took a total of three days. Various members of the town in which they lived would come to them and offer gifts for their promising lives together. Lucy’s family even had to give Frank a dowry in return for him marrying her. He was given a pig and a cow to start their lives together. Nothing fancy, by any means, but this was a very common and accepted act back then. When they truly opened themselves to each other and let the love bond them, it really made their relationship stand the test of time – and they faced hardships.

22

After Frank and his brothers left is really when things started to unravel for the people of Nowy Sacz, including my grandmother and family. It turns out that my family’s elders really had no control of what was happening, and they could do little to stop anything that was happening. The Nazi’s had told them to pack what they needed and to move into town. They were told it was for their own protection. My family did as they were told and didn’t want to cause conflict. With the number of Nazi’s coming into town on a daily basis, it was evident that this wasn’t going to end well.

My family fought to stay together after being moved into the ghettos themselves, but they were soon split up after that move. One day, a Nazi patrol man banged at the door. He was reluctantly let in. After barging in and scaring my grandmother and her siblings, the officer told them that Lucy, her sisters Carolina and Victoria should pack their things, and bring as many warm clothes with them as possible. They were going on a train. Frantic, the family members were appalled and wanted to stop this, but my grandmother, being secretly scared on the inside, rose up and told her parents not to worry. Lucy knew how to look after her sisters, she wasn’t scared, at least she didn’t show it. So, Lucy, Victoria, and Carolina gathered their things, bundled up on a seemingly warm day, and went off with the office.

Turmoil in Poland was brewing at an alarming rate. Towns were being taken over by either Nazi Germany or Communist Russia, yet the people of Nowy Sacz really weren’t too scared about their farmland being taken. They thought, who really wants anything to do with a bunch of flowers and a small harvest compared to the rest of Poland. They didn’t see trouble until it was knocking on their front door.

My mother told me that out of the blue one day, land was being taken away from the people at an alarming rate. The Nazi’s came to town and started to burn down buildings and take possession of people’s belongings, and actual people. They were moving the Jews into the ghetto sections of town which really decimated the once rich and vibrant town. My grandparents and the rest of my family, for that matter, stayed in Nowy Sacz for quite a while before they too were affected. This is where the story really starts to show the hardships that my grandparents really had to face. Before the Nazi’s came knocking on my family’s door, Frank and a couple of his brothers had decided to join the Polish Army and fight back against the Nazi regime. One night, they secretly left Nowy Sacz to join the military and defend what was theirs. This really was a punch to the gut for Lucy. She obviously didn’t want him to go, but the elders of the family really say it as the best case scenario for Frank and his brothers. The elders thought they would be able to do the best of the family, so no one really questioned their decision making.

24

As my mother and I talked about the long journey they were on, it became apparent as to just how bad the terrain of Siberia is. The snow never stopped. Where they ended up was a small isolated village where they were given meek living quarters and barely any food. They ended up working at this camp for the Nazi’s, though I’m not sure what they were working on. My mother told me that many of the women at this camp didn’t make it. Pneumonia set in, there wasn’t enough to keep them warm or nourished. Yet, Lucy, Victoria and Carolina, weak and emaciated, made it through. Even though it was a work camp, everyday was a new day that showed that they, too, were expendable. Every day they were there, Lucy would often think of Frank. She would wonder if he knew what had happened to her and her sisters. If their family in Nowy Sacz were safe. Thinking of him made the days bearable. At night, huddled with her sisters to keep warm, and thought of the day when she would see him again. After being there for about a year, in the cold, forty or so women from the camp, Lucy, Carolina and Victoria included, were split up from the rest of the group and put on another train. No one told them were they were doing, they just had to follow instruction. So they did.

That was the last time my grandmother would see any of my family that was left in Nowy Sacz. They were standing in a crowded area of the town, waiting for some sort of direction. They all looked scared, hungry, After some time and a boisterous voice was heard bellowing who knows what; they were led onto train cars. Crowded together, like cattle being loaded. Lucy noticed that most of the people in the rail cars were her age give or take 5 years. All of them were women. She overheard some of them talking and the one word that kept being repeated was evident as to where they were going, Siberia.

My mother had told me that Lucy kept telling her sisters to bundle up, but they didn’t understand why if it was a nice day. “It probably isn’t this nice where we’re headed, sisters,” Lucy told them as they were unaware of where they were headed. They then put on their sweaters and parkas and leaned up against each other, hoping for the best. The worry was already cast over their eyes.

26

Frank and his brother Johnny joined the Polish army soon after the Nazi’s started to take over Nowy Sacz. They didn’t hear what had happened after they left Nowy Sacz – it was turned into a death camp. Those who were left in the ghettos were ultimately killed. Only a small few were sent away or ran away before anything could happen to them. Months had passed before he heard the news of what had become of his homeland and his family. He was devastated.

He did find out that Lucy and her sisters, along with his own sister were taken away, but he didn’t know the full story on what had transpired. Being focused on what he could do, that’s what mattered to him at this point. He hoped that Lucy and the others were safe, but he needed to focus on what he could control. So he fought. He went to the western border of Poland, and tried to stop the Nazi’s from pushing forward.

After he and his comrades pulled back from the ever-prevalent Nazi soldiers, they regrouped and he was then sent to Italy. There, he fought in the Battle of Monte Cristo. It was a victory for Italy and those against the Nazi’s, but Frank was actually injured when he was there. He was shot twice, once in the wrist, and once in the leg

The bullet in the leg remained in him until he died well into his 90’s. At the time, they were scared to remove the bullet for fear of actually killing Frank. I remember the wounds my grandfather had. The walker he was bound to for the rest of his life because of the injury. He never did complain about anything that had happened to him, surprisingly.

While he was recuperating from his injuries, he was on a search to find anyone that he could, Lucy in particular. After much searching, he had found out that she was sent to a work camp in Africa along with her sisters. His sister, Wladka, was in a work camp, but I don’t know where.

Frank eventually became a sergeant. Ironically, after being in Italy for a while, he was then stationed in Africa where he stood ground with allies to prevent the Nazi’s takeover. He knew he was on the same continent as Lucy, and that was what made the days go by for him.

28

After the long journey by train from Siberia to Africa – the women, Lucy, Victoria and Carolina included, were all so drained and tired. It took them a couple of weeks to regain some of their strength. The journey, long with extreme temperatures, with very little to eat of drink, living in their own excrement – it really weakened them in ways that a human should never have to feel. My mother had said that Lucy never felt the same after that journey.

Once Lucy was starting to feel better, she really did enjoy being in Africa. The work camp there wasn’t anywhere near as bad as it was in Siberia. They were starting to be given meals more frequently, their living conditions, still meek, were such a vast improvement from what theyhad become accustomed to. Lucy even started to learn the native language there.

About six months into living in Africa, illness had plagued my grandmother yet again. She would eat, but she was getting thinner and thinner by the minute. Apparently, she had eaten some bad meat that was given to her and she got a tapeworm. A few of the women who Lucy had become friends with took care of her. Even though she was so hungry and emaciated, they told her she couldn’t eat. This was the only way she could get rid of the tapeworm, and they were right. After two weeks of bed rest and no food, she was finally able to get rid of the tapeworm.

This wasn’t ideal for her, but she knew it was for the best. One morning, she went into a vomit fit – dry heaving, gagging, the whole nine. She was starting to vomit up the tapeworm. A local woman, her friend, had actually started to pull on the tapeworm to try and help Lucy pass it quicker. After about 20 or 30 minutes of vomiting, the tapeworm was finally out of my grandmother. The visuals of this alone was too much for me to bare, even today. I can only imagine what my grandmother had to go through.

Lucy and her sisters lived in Africa for about a year total. Her sisters actually received word from their significant others and were allowed to leave to be with them. This happened within a couple of months of each other. Lucy was the last to leave. She would miss this place she had started to love, but she was ready to be normal again. A month after Carolina left, Frank had sent word that he would send for her shortly. The war was over!

30

Even though the war was over, their land in Poland would never be their’s again. It was still occupied by military, and they never felt safe going back there. Frank ended up finding a refugee camp in England that wasn’t the Ritz by any means, but they could finally start their lives together. Lucy was brought to England 2 months after she heard from Frank. They lived in army barracks in England. It was small, two rooms total, but they were happy.

The floors were dirt and there were so many people in the barracks. They were all breathing a sigh of relief. Normalcy had taken over them, and they felt free enough to live. Four years after the war, they had their first daughter, Marisha. Some six years later, they had their second child, Ann. After having the two daughters, Frank wanted nothing but the best for them, so he moved them all to America because he hoped for them to have better and easier lives than they had. Lucy was reluctant at first, but once in America, she was happy. That was the last time Lucy and Frank ever moved. They had found peace within themselves, and the world.

Lucy died when she was 55 with a brain aneurism; my grandfather passed away well into his 90’s from old age. Ten years before my grandfather died, he received word from Poland stating that he was able to get his land back. He replied saying he didn’t want the land, and to give it to any relatives that may still reside there. I’m not sure if anyone in my family does live there.

I appreciate all they did for themselves and my mother and aunt. Without them, I don’t know who I’d be. Without my mother, I don’t know if I would be as gracious for life as I am now. Their guidance of me to be strong and the knowledge to follow my heart has never let me down, even with the obstacles that may get in the way, at times. I can’t wait to see what the world has in store for me next, and I know they’ll be there with me every step of the way.

32

This is the migration of Lucy and Frank from where they lived in Poland, the various locations where they were stationed during WWII, where they finally met up after the war – and them settling in the New World.

Lucy’s journey started in Poland, then to Siberia. After that was Africa, and then she met up with Frank in England.

During that same time frame, Frank was sent to various sections of Poland, then to Italy and then Africa (a different location from where Lucy was sent). After Africa, Frank went up to England where he met up with Lucy roughly around 1945. By 1949, Marisha was born, 6 years later their second child Ann was born, and some ten years later the whole family moved to America.

This happened over a twenty year period,roughly from 1939 to 1960.

Siberia

Start

ItalyItaly

Africa

Poland

Africa

NJ, USA

England

Key Indicates where Lucy is. Lucy

Frank

Marisha

Indicates where Frank is.

Indicates them together.

36