GERTRUD (RUTH) DOERNBERG
Holocaust Project Katzenelson High School ISRAEL
mail:
relationet2014@gmail.com saadaor10@gmail.commaslatiadi@gmail.com First Name: Ruth
Last Name: Berkeley Previous last name: Doernberg
Previous first name: Gertrud
Year of Birth: 1926
City of Birth: Peine
Country: Germany
Father :Dornberg Ernst
Mother: Dorenber Amalia
PEINE:
Kassel
Before War World II:
In 1807, Napoleon annexed Kassel and
turned it into the Kingdom of Westphalia.
After 1930, the
Nazis came to power. As a result, the Jews were gradually removed from public
life.
During the War:
Kassel became a strong city of
production. The city had a strong train, Because
of that the town was used for forced labor camps.
Kassel was attacked in a very hard way on 22 October 1943.
This attack destroyed the old city center and about 10,000 people were killed.
After the War:
After the war, most of the ancient
buildings were not restored, and large parts of the city center were completely
rebuilt in the style of the 1950's.
The interview :
Ruth Gertrud Doernberg was born on June 9,
1926 in a small town called Piene
She was an only child to Enest and Amalia Doernberg.
Her mother was a teacher and a nurse who served during World War I.
Her father had owned a carpentry shop and following the economic issues and the
inflation, he had to close his business.
Therefore, when Ruth was 2 years old, they left Piene and moved to Kassel.
Kassel was a town with a lot of
anti-Semitism .However, life in Kassel was pretty good and comfortable. There
were parties, trips and events and they were happy there, until the Nazis took
reign. When the Nazis became stronger, the fear in the streets increased and the
education of the Jews became limited.
In addition to prohibitions,
Anti-Semitism was also demonstrated in a physical way. The teachers of the school helped and defended the Jewish students
when they came to school. But when they came home, there was no one who helped
them. Occasionally, when Ruth returned home, the gentile kids abused her
because she was a Jew.
Once, when Ruth was outside, she saw mass
concentration of people and this intrigued her. Therefore, she asked one
on of them why they were there and he said that Hitler intended to arrive and
they were waiting for him. Ruth did not know who was Hitler and that was why
she decided to wait for him too, with them. Fortunately, a
family member had seen her there and forced her to go home and she survived the
dangers that would have happened if she had stayed there.
Another experience Ruth experienced due to rise of the Nazis
happened in Kristallnacht on 9 November 1938.On this day, the Nazis and Germans
hit the Jews physically. They destroyed and smashed Jewish shops and businesses,
burned synagogues and Jewish men were taken to labor camps.
Ruth's father heard that the Gestapo-the
secret police, came to Jewish homes and took the men. Therefore, he ran away to
his mother in Eisenach.
That night, the police indeed arrived at their house
and asked for her father. Her mother lied and said that he still did not come
back from work so they waited for him. When her father came home, (one day later)
the Gestapo men gave him ten minutes to organize his suitcase and then they took him to Buchenwald
concentration camp. In this period, Hitler
wanted the Jews out
of Germany, and therefore, he gave the
possibility of an exit visa
owner. Ruth's mother received a family visa to go to England.
Her father was released from the camp,
because the Gestapo heard that he had a visa.
A couple of days before they left for England, Ruth noticed that her parents
locked the home door with a chair and other objects. She was interested why
they had done this and she understood that a smuggler who was supposed to bar
their money, some
jewelry and precious
objects to Holland was caught and they were scared that he would
inform on them.
In
1939, they drove to Holland and from there they took a ship to England. In
England they were refugees and lived in a small apartment. After a while, they
moved to a better place.
At the beginning, after
they came to England, Ruth studied in a public school for two months, but when War
world II broke out, she was forced to stop. Because they came from Germany, the
people of England treated them like enemies and therefore they were sent to an
island. It was called "Isle of Man" and they stayed for two years.
All the people on the island were divided to a group of women and a group of men and they had to live separately.
The conditions there were good, beside the fact that they did not get
education. After a year in the island, the men and the women could be together.
Two years after the first time they came to this place, they had been released
(Ruth and her family had been there for 22 months).
They moved to live in London and there they serenaded a large flat.
Ruth's mother got a working visa, but
her father didn't. In that time Ruth began to go to the Zionist movement "Habonim" where she met a lot of
friends. When she received a draft notice to the war, she decided to go to
agriculture and therefore she joined a Kibbutz training. There in the Kibbutz,
she met her husband Zeev.
He
was in the army and when he was on vacation, they met.
After soma time she and her husband Zeev moved to London and there they married,
she was 21 years old and he was 21 and a half years old. Right after the
wedding, she became pregnant. They received a letter about immigrating to
Israel illegally using false documents. So they flew from London to Paris and
from there to camp St. Gerome. From this camp, they drove to Israel under very difficult
conditions, on top of which she was pregnant.They arrived to Haifa and stayed for a week in an immigrants
house, after the week they came to Kibbutz Gilad and there they began to build the country.
Ruth moved after the Kibbutz to "Gani Judah", were they lived for 41
years comfortably. For 8 years, Ruth had volunteered as a librarian in Ichilov
hospital and after that she decided to learn librarianship and started to work
as a librarian.
Her husband Zeev died 4 years ago and in this day she lives in a nursing home
in Kfar Saba.
she has two kids, six grandchildren, and eleven grand grandchildren.
Video about Ruth's life in Hebrew
Pages of Testimony of her family who died
in the Holocaust:
Her grandmother Gohanna Marburger
-
Her uncle Alfred Weihl-
Her aunt Grete Weihl-
Her cousin Walter Weihl-
x
Kassel
During the War:
Before War World II:
In 1807, Napoleon annexed Kassel and
turned it into the Kingdom of Westphalia.
After 1930, the Nazis came to power. As a result, the Jews were gradually removed from public life.
After 1930, the Nazis came to power. As a result, the Jews were gradually removed from public life.
During the War:
Kassel became a strong city of
production. The city had a strong train, Because
of that the town was used for forced labor camps.
Kassel was attacked in a very hard way on 22 October 1943.
This attack destroyed the old city center and about 10,000 people were killed.
Kassel was attacked in a very hard way on 22 October 1943.
This attack destroyed the old city center and about 10,000 people were killed.
After the War:
After the war, most of the ancient
buildings were not restored, and large parts of the city center were completely
rebuilt in the style of the 1950's.
The interview :
Ruth Gertrud Doernberg was born on June 9, 1926 in a small town called Piene
She was an only child to Enest and Amalia Doernberg.
Her mother was a teacher and a nurse who served during World War I.
Her father had owned a carpentry shop and following the economic issues and the inflation, he had to close his business.
Therefore, when Ruth was 2 years old, they left Piene and moved to Kassel.
Kassel was a town with a lot of
anti-Semitism .However, life in Kassel was pretty good and comfortable. There
were parties, trips and events and they were happy there, until the Nazis took
reign. When the Nazis became stronger, the fear in the streets increased and the
education of the Jews became limited.
In addition to prohibitions,
Anti-Semitism was also demonstrated in a physical way. The teachers of the school helped and defended the Jewish students
when they came to school. But when they came home, there was no one who helped
them. Occasionally, when Ruth returned home, the gentile kids abused her
because she was a Jew.
Once, when Ruth was outside, she saw mass
concentration of people and this intrigued her. Therefore, she asked one
on of them why they were there and he said that Hitler intended to arrive and
they were waiting for him. Ruth did not know who was Hitler and that was why
she decided to wait for him too, with them. Fortunately, a
family member had seen her there and forced her to go home and she survived the
dangers that would have happened if she had stayed there.
Another experience Ruth experienced due to rise of the Nazis
happened in Kristallnacht on 9 November 1938.On this day, the Nazis and Germans
hit the Jews physically. They destroyed and smashed Jewish shops and businesses,
burned synagogues and Jewish men were taken to labor camps.
Ruth's father heard that the Gestapo-the
secret police, came to Jewish homes and took the men. Therefore, he ran away to
his mother in Eisenach.
That night, the police indeed arrived at their house
and asked for her father. Her mother lied and said that he still did not come
back from work so they waited for him. When her father came home, (one day later)
the Gestapo men gave him ten minutes to organize his suitcase and then they took him to Buchenwald
concentration camp. In this period, Hitler
wanted the Jews out
of Germany, and therefore, he gave the
possibility of an exit visa
owner. Ruth's mother received a family visa to go to England.
Her father was released from the camp, because the Gestapo heard that he had a visa.
A couple of days before they left for England, Ruth noticed that her parents locked the home door with a chair and other objects. She was interested why they had done this and she understood that a smuggler who was supposed to bar their money, some jewelry and precious objects to Holland was caught and they were scared that he would inform on them.
In
1939, they drove to Holland and from there they took a ship to England. In
England they were refugees and lived in a small apartment. After a while, they
moved to a better place.
At the beginning, after they came to England, Ruth studied in a public school for two months, but when War world II broke out, she was forced to stop. Because they came from Germany, the people of England treated them like enemies and therefore they were sent to an island. It was called "Isle of Man" and they stayed for two years. All the people on the island were divided to a group of women and a group of men and they had to live separately. The conditions there were good, beside the fact that they did not get education. After a year in the island, the men and the women could be together. Two years after the first time they came to this place, they had been released (Ruth and her family had been there for 22 months).
They moved to live in London and there they serenaded a large flat. Ruth's mother got a working visa, but her father didn't. In that time Ruth began to go to the Zionist movement "Habonim" where she met a lot of friends. When she received a draft notice to the war, she decided to go to agriculture and therefore she joined a Kibbutz training. There in the Kibbutz, she met her husband Zeev.
At the beginning, after they came to England, Ruth studied in a public school for two months, but when War world II broke out, she was forced to stop. Because they came from Germany, the people of England treated them like enemies and therefore they were sent to an island. It was called "Isle of Man" and they stayed for two years. All the people on the island were divided to a group of women and a group of men and they had to live separately. The conditions there were good, beside the fact that they did not get education. After a year in the island, the men and the women could be together. Two years after the first time they came to this place, they had been released (Ruth and her family had been there for 22 months).
They moved to live in London and there they serenaded a large flat. Ruth's mother got a working visa, but her father didn't. In that time Ruth began to go to the Zionist movement "Habonim" where she met a lot of friends. When she received a draft notice to the war, she decided to go to agriculture and therefore she joined a Kibbutz training. There in the Kibbutz, she met her husband Zeev.
He
was in the army and when he was on vacation, they met.
After soma time she and her husband Zeev moved to London and there they married, she was 21 years old and he was 21 and a half years old. Right after the wedding, she became pregnant. They received a letter about immigrating to Israel illegally using false documents. So they flew from London to Paris and from there to camp St. Gerome. From this camp, they drove to Israel under very difficult conditions, on top of which she was pregnant.They arrived to Haifa and stayed for a week in an immigrants house, after the week they came to Kibbutz Gilad and there they began to build the country.
Ruth moved after the Kibbutz to "Gani Judah", were they lived for 41 years comfortably. For 8 years, Ruth had volunteered as a librarian in Ichilov hospital and after that she decided to learn librarianship and started to work as a librarian.
Her husband Zeev died 4 years ago and in this day she lives in a nursing home in Kfar Saba.
she has two kids, six grandchildren, and eleven grand grandchildren.
After soma time she and her husband Zeev moved to London and there they married, she was 21 years old and he was 21 and a half years old. Right after the wedding, she became pregnant. They received a letter about immigrating to Israel illegally using false documents. So they flew from London to Paris and from there to camp St. Gerome. From this camp, they drove to Israel under very difficult conditions, on top of which she was pregnant.They arrived to Haifa and stayed for a week in an immigrants house, after the week they came to Kibbutz Gilad and there they began to build the country.
Ruth moved after the Kibbutz to "Gani Judah", were they lived for 41 years comfortably. For 8 years, Ruth had volunteered as a librarian in Ichilov hospital and after that she decided to learn librarianship and started to work as a librarian.
Her husband Zeev died 4 years ago and in this day she lives in a nursing home in Kfar Saba.
she has two kids, six grandchildren, and eleven grand grandchildren.
Video about Ruth's life in Hebrew
Pages of Testimony of her family who died
in the Holocaust:
Her grandmother Gohanna Marburger -
Her uncle Alfred Weihl-
Her aunt Grete Weihl-
Her cousin Walter Weihl-
Her grandmother Gohanna Marburger -
Her uncle Alfred Weihl-
Her aunt Grete Weihl-
Her cousin Walter Weihl-
