Lenka Weksberg was born in Tacovo, Czechoslovakia, in 1926. In 1944, the entire family was deported to the Mathesalka Ghetto in Hungary and then to Auschwitz-Birkenau, where her mother and brother were murdered. Lenka survived a slave labour camp in Geislingen, and Alach, as well as a death march. Lenka was liberated by the US
Stanley Grizzle has led an illustrious life, and Crestwood students were fortunate to meet him in the spring of 2013 – on several occasions – and we are indebted to Kathy Grant and the Legacy Voices Project for setting up that introduction. Stanley Grizzle was born in Toronto in 1918, to Jamaican parents who immigrated
Charles Mann is a Canadian veteran of World War Two who served with the Black Devils. Originally from Port Hope, Charles and his family were affected by the Great Depression, like so many other Canadian families. Charles left school for work, but with the coming of the war, he enlisted in the army, and when
Max Sitzer is a Holocaust Survivor from Poland who has a family connection at Crestwood; he was interviewed by his young cousin Mara Bowman here at the school in March 2013. Max lived in eastern Poland and was under Soviet rule for the first part of the war, but with the German invasion in 1941
A South African Jew, Mr. Leonard Rubinstein volunteered to fight with the British 8th Army the “Desert Rats” in WW2. After seeing action in Bardia, he was captured and spent the remainder of the war in Axis POW camps, where he was fortunate to keep his religious identity secret from the Gestapo. Mr. Rubinstein came
Charles Leggatt served in the British army during WW2. Charles visited us at Crestwood several times, and on our final visit with him we visited him in his home. Charles was a magnificent storyteller, and he shared with Crestwood students his numerous wartime exploits: the Home Guard, his memories of his brother Kenneth, the Battle
Alex Eisen was born December 9, 1929 in Vienna, Austria. After the Anschluss in 1938, the Eisen family fled to Hungary. In 1939, Alex’s father was arrested and fled to Palestine, leaving his wife alone with their three children. Alex and the rest of the family endured the hardships of the Budapest Ghetto, but later
Eddy Sterk lived in Holland at the beginning of the war. As his father worked in a hospital, Eddy and his family were able to evade the early deportations, which slowly saw Amsterdam’s Jews transported “to the east”. Eddy’s siblings were eventually taken, and soon after Eddy and his parents were rounded up as well.
Allen Weiss was born in Romania in 1929. Allen had loving parents along with two sisters and a brother. He grew up in a small village where his family owned a grocery store. Allen was 14 years old when the Nazis forced him out of his village. Allen was taken to Auschwitz – Birkenau with
Edith Pagelson’s personal story of survival began in Germany. She and her family were victims of Hitler’s Nazi regime well before the war began, feeling the sting of the Nuremberg Laws and Kristallnacht all through the 1930s. She and her family were deported from Duisberg to the Terezin Ghetto, where Edith’s father died. After spending
George Lysy was born February 1, 1916 on a farm near Nove Zamky in Czechoslovakia. From an early age, George worked on the family’s dairy farm. He graduated from the College of Agriculture before the war. In 1938, when the Hungarians took over the region, George applied for a farmer’s visa to Canada but was
We met Alex Levin courtesy of the Memory Project and the Azrieli Foundation, where he is a keynote speaker and author. Alex’s story is one of the most compelling ones we have heard; his family was from Poland, and they experienced the full weight of the war’s early years, invaded first by the USSR and
Ella Kuritski is from Lithuania. After the German invasion in 1941, her father was taken and murdered by the Nazis, and she and her family were relocated to the Kovno ghetto. She was fortunate to survive the deportations and ultimate liquidation of the ghetto and was sent instead to a work camp, where she forced
Bill Glied grew up in Serbia, enjoying a good life within his community. The family had a prosperous business, and Bill had many friends – and he was a skilled goalie on his soccer team. In April, 1944, that all changed: Bill was deported along with his entire family from his home town of Subotica,
Esther Bem was raised in Zagreb. Two of her older sisters, Jelka and Vera, joined Tito’s Underground Resistance Army in 1941. Jelka was caught by the Croat Fascist Ustashi in 1942 and executed. Vera was cited for bravery by Tito’s Partisans and became an officer. Esther and her parents survived by hiding in Italy with
John Slater was born in Toronto in 1922. He grew up during the Great Depression, and his father had to take care of the family. Mr. Slater didn’t enlist in the war at first; he was asked to join. When he was in Europe he made some friends in Scotland and Britain. Mr. Slater and
Born into a military family, Charles Scot-Brown said there was never a doubt about his enlistment. After growing up during the Depression, Charles joined the army and was trained as an infantryman. He was sent overseas to England and went across the Channel on June 6, 1944, as part of the second wave of Allied
Chuck Sanford was in the USAAF in World War Two. A B-17 pilot, he trained all across the United States before being shipped to Europe. Stationed in England, he flew a number of missions before an injury sent him back to the US. The army kept him on for period, using him to look at
John Reynolds served in the Canadian Forces during WW2. He had tried to join the Air Force in 1940 but was considered too young, so a year later he tried to join the Navy but was unable to go because his work was considered essential. When they actually let him join the forces, he joined
Mr. Lloyd Queen served in the Canadian Army during the war. After training, he was commissioned as a ieutenant and sent to England. He went ashore in the first wave of the Normandy invasion and was in France for about a month before being deployed to the Netherlands and the Battle of the Scheldt. He
Alejo Parucha fought against the Japanese Military Forces in World War II, under the United States Armed Forces in the Far East USAFFE. Captured at Bataan, he joined the Infamous Death March and was held as a Prisoner of War for 9 months, only released on December 25, 1942 as a Gift of Christmas. From
Jack Newman served in the Canadian Armed Forces during the war. After signing up, he was at Manning Depot at the Ex, followed by training at Brantford and Petawawa. He was assigned to the 4th Battery, 3rd Anti-Tank Regiment and shipped off to England. After time in Aldershot, he was sent with his regiment to
Leon Moyen is a Korean War veteran who came from the small country of Luxembourg. He was born in 1930 and he enlisted in the army at the age of 16. When Leon first arrived in Korea, his main task was to do patrols. According to him, this job wasn’t always dangerous. Eventually he was
When WW2 broke out, all Japanese-Canadians were labeled as enemy aliens were sent to the internment camps. Mr. Moritsuguand his brother were separated from his family; while Mr. Moritsugu’s family were sent to Tashme camp, he and his brother Ken were sent to Yard Creek Road. Despite the treatment accorded his family by their own
Gerald Loweth came to us courtesy of the Royal Canadian Military Institute, where he has been a featured speaker. Gerald continues to teach at University of Toronto’s Trinity College. Gerald brought a different perspective to Crestwood’s interviews. As an American, growing up in New Jersey against the backdrop of the Great Depression and war, Gerald
Larry Levy served in the Canadian Army in northern Europe during the war. After enlisting, training, and the overseas journey, Larry went ashore at Normandy and fought his way through northern France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. Larry served with Signal Corps, and it was his task to locate enemy artillery. Larry brought many personal insights
Michael Lakrits is a veteran of the Soviet Red Army who fought on the eastern front during WW2. He attended an air force academy and was at first a machine gun and radio operator in a bomber. He joined when he was 19 and first faced the Nazis in Estonia in 1941. In December of
When the war first broke out, Mr.Kewen was a young man from Saskatoon who was still in school. On Oct 10, 1940, with support from his family, he joined the army after all of his friends had joined. Like his younger brother, he wanted to be an navigator, but instead worked as a mechanic on
Murray Jacobs grew up in prewar Toronto, where he saw some of the city’s growing pains in the 1930s. That included the infamous Christie Pitts Riots of the 1930s, in which he was involved and was forced to confront the reality of local anti-Semitism. He enlisted in World War Two, where he would serve in
Joseph Hertelendy served in the Hungarian army in World War Two. When Hungary found itself in an alliance with Nazi Germany, he was forced into action on the eastern front, where he saw action at Stanislaw and Stalingrad. He returned home after being wounded on the battlefield. After the war, Joseph was sent to a
