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The Builders and Activists of the Volkovysk Orphanage

Abraham Kaganovich

Chana Kaganovich

The father, Herschel, was the kind of a Jew for whom one made way when encountering him in the street, and this was not only because of his beneficent appearance, but also out of fear that he wouldn't accidentally step on the feet of the passerby – so intent was he on what he was pursuing. He loved to hold himself out as the spokesman for the older generation, but despite this, he demonstrated a substantial understanding of the modern system of raising the orphans, with which his modern-oriented son Shabtai was concerned with leading. Both father and son excelled in their dedication to the institution and the orphans themselves.

Shabtai Gordon, the child rearer, occupied a distinguished place in the history of the orphanage. For years on end, he put his whole heart deeply into the development of the institution, into the rearing and welfare system for his children. Also, after I went to the Land of Israel, he would mail me regular long monthly reports about his love – the orphanage.

Abraham & Chana (Nechama) Kaganovich, strongly merited the privilege of being counted among the dedicated activists on behalf of the orphanage. Nechama Kaganovich herself, came from the village of Bezvadnya, near Zelva. Until 1915, she lived in Bialystok, and afterwards in Zelva. Despite the fact that she had not been born in Volkovysk and spent her childhood and younger years in other places, she nevertheless, from the very first day she settled in Volkovysk, was fully taken up with the founding and development of a number of Volkovysk community institutions, such as the Volkovysk Yiddish Volksschule, the Public Library, the orphanage, and others. In the area of the orphanage, she was active from the very first years of its establishment. Even before its establishment, that is to say, before the building of the institution was put up, and the orphans were temporarily quartered in private homes, Nechama Kaganovich would pay a visit to each and every one of these orphans in the various houses – from Karczyzna to underneath the Barg. She would do this without consideration of the weather – in rain and snow. Nechama Kaganovich was not the type of woman who had means, and engaged in community service as a way of killing the hours, so to speak. She herself was a working woman, who under the din of the new machines, and under the refrains of freedom songs, absorbed the love of all the afflicted, to all the poor and helpless. That is why she dedicated her few free hours after work to charitable causes, mostly on behalf of the poor and solitary orphans of the city. She possessed a high order of intelligence and a matchless maternal persona. As soon as she threw herself into the work on behalf of the orphanage, she became the Chair of the trades committee. She never missed a meeting of the leadership board, and she would often arrive with complete plans on how to help out this or that orphan, and how to equip him with the necessary trade skills, which would give him the capacity, once he left the institution, to stand independently on his own two feet. She, and her husband, Abraham Kaganovich, with the consent of the orphanage, took in two orphans, a girl and a boy, whom they trained, each in his own craft, and gave them a home with parental love, just as if they had been their own children. Mrs. Kaganovich never passed over an undertaking at the orphanage, and she would often spend an entire night there, and then, without any sleep, go

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off to a new day of work. Almost all of the girl orphans were employed in her sewing factory. She would train them well in their trade, and when they would leave her, they already were quite skilled workers. With her whole-hearted dedication to community work, to which she dedicated eighteen years of her life, she always elicited the greatest respect from all sides with whom she made any sort of contact. And in 1936, after she and her husband emigrated to join their children in Argentina, with a new impetus, she immediately threw herself into this important work, and awoke, called upon, and stormed against the hearts of the Volkovysk landsleit, that they not forget the poor orphans on the other side of the ocean. Unfortunately, death brought a halt to her active and energetic life at the age of 53. She died in the year 1941 (19 Tammuz 5701).

This sad news about the dear woman that all held in affection, the former member of the leadership of the orphanage and president of the Trades Committee, Chana Kaganovich, cause me a great deal of suffering and pain. In her, I lost the best and most loyal friend, with whom I had worked together as president of the orphanage for many years.

Also he, Abraham Kaganovich was an important and very productive personality in Jewish community life from Volkovysk prior to the war. With his tall imposing figure, and good-natured smile, he already excelled in showing a deep instinct for culture, art, and community work, even as a young man. Coming from parents who were poor working people, he traveled to Bialystok while still a young boy and learned the trade of a metalworker. When he returned to Volkovysk in 1918 after the First World War, he found the city in ruins. The Jewish institutions were then in a shambles, and the energies of the populace were wholly unfocused. What was required was the skilled hand of a good organizer. He immediately threw himself with complete ardor into community activity, and was a leading personality in such institutions as the Manual Trades Society, Linat Kholim, the Jewish Hospital, the orphanage, the bank, etc. He is also active in Argentina for the benefit of the people of Volkovysk. He was elected as president of the Volkovysk Society of Argentina. After the Second World War, he led the relief campaign for the small number of those Volkovysk refugees that remained alive. He accumulated a sum of five thousand pesos, which was used to buy a variety of things for the refugees, and warm undergarments, who were scattered all over a number of countries: Poland, Italy, Austria and Germany. Every refugee received an allotment, shoes and warm undergarments. This initiative continues to be led by him today.

Hillel Lev (Koshchilker) and his Family – I knew the old Lev-Koshchilker couple from years ago on the Koshchilker plaza. In the last years, when I was occupied with the work on behalf of the orphanage our friendship became even stronger. When, because of advancing age, they were unable to partake fully in the activities on behalf of the orphanage, the helped out the institution with their big-hearted donations. After they passed away, their children took their place, and over a period of years, they were among the most active supporters of the institution. Lev's son, and his wife, Rachel (the daughter of Pomerantz^[1], one of the finest and most popular Jews in Krzemienica), as well as Lev's daughter, Manya Meshengisser, and the other two daughters, Korotniatsky and Goldberg, all did a great deal for the institution. Thanks to their great generosity, and constant willingness to help the orphans and the needy, as well as through their influence on other people to follow their example, they are counted among the supporters of the orphanage.

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Apart from the orphanage, they were very active in helping out poor and solitary children. It is for this reason, for example, that a young lady orphan was employed in their whiskey distillery, whose mother sold baked goods in the streets, that was given to her on consignment without money by the two city bakers, Abraham Lev (the Bialystoker Baker) and Zayd'keh Kaplan (the great Hassid), who would even take back the unsold baked goods in the evening. They did this to help her out, so that she could earn something of a living and support her orphaned children. When the oldest daughter of the widow, who worked for the Levs was to get married, the Levs treated her as if she was their own child. Lev's son gave her first class furniture as a wedding present, for her new home, the older Levs provided her with just about everything that she needed, and they served as the principal Mekhutonim at the wedding ceremony, greeting each and every one of the guests with happiness and satisfaction. Also, Lev's children came to take part in the great festivity, in whose preparation the elderly Mrs. Yunovich (Herschel the Butcher's mother) participated to a great extent, and I myself, by taking out a large loan at the bank, in order to allow the poor widow an opportunity to carry out the wedding in the finest manner. This modest wedding turned into a city-wide celebration. The happiness of the Levs was great, just as if they were making a wedding for one of their own children. Old Mrs. Yunovich, who had provided the wedding with meat, fish and baked goods, that she had procured in the city, was also a principal Makhatenista at the wedding. Her pride with the success of the undertaking could be seen in the fact that her kerchief had become disheveled over her forehead, and her indescribable joy – in the dance, with which she escorted the bride and her mother to the Huppah. As if by magic, everyone was immediately drawn into a dance that continued for an extended number of hours.

The good and big-hearted helpful work for the benefit of the poor orphans by the Lev family was intensified even further, when their son suddenly dies at a very young age. His widow, Rachel threw herself into the work on behalf of the orphans with great intensity, and her impact was uniquely substantial.

Velvel Kaplan & Akiva Yudzhik – These two Volkovysk balebatim were known in the city to be two people on whom one could always count in time of trouble. Their willingness, and constant readiness to come to the help of the needy, had no bounds. I remember once, during the crisis of 1934-36, a Jew in Volkovysk was severely impacted, and he had decided to commit suicide. He threw himself underneath a train and was killed, leaving a widow and small children. It just so happens that his eldest daughter was planning to get married, and the terrifying tragedy of her father's suicide almost caused the wedding to be canceled. I immediately contacted Velvel Kaplan from Zamoscheh, and Akiva Yudzhik, and as usual they came forward with substantive help. We reached a decision to see the daughter married under any and all circumstances as soon a possible after the thirty day mourning period, and wherever possible to financially provide for the widow. We immediately contacted the forest product merchant in Slonim, for whom her father had worked for many years, who only because of the crisis, found it necessary to dismiss him from his job, which indeed had led to the suicide. The merchant donated a sum of four hundred zlotys, which we deposited in the bank in the name of the widow, in order to provide her with an income that would support her and her children. We also initiated a help campaign aimed at all the Volkovysk Jews, who as usual, responded warmly to our call. Yaakov Goldberg, the manufacturer and merchant, stood out in his generosity on behalf of the young couple. It was in this manner, that we were able to come to the bereaved family at the end of the Shiva period, and present them with the required support to be able to put on the wedding for the daughter exactly after the end of the thirty day period of mourning. This was a complete surprise to the widow, who literally didn't want to believe our words, when it was proposed that she go out to the stores and begin to buy the necessary things for the wedding. We obtained a nice apartment for the young couple in Kushnir's house, and the orphanage immediately paid the sum of 120 zlotys for one year's rent. The groom was given a position at the merchants bank. I used this opportunity to obtain a new Huppah to replace the old and used one belonging to the Rabbinate – which was sewn by the children just in time for the end of the thirty days mourning for the bride's unfortunate father.

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Chana Heller – Member of the leadership and the development committee. Chana Heller was the wife of Leib Heller, of the well-known Heller brothers, the philanthropists. Even though she stepped into active work for the orphanage late in life, when she was 72 years old, in the last years of her life, for eight years, she worked actively on behalf of the welfare of the solitary child. In her eight years, she never once missed a meeting, and never once failed to participate in an undertaking. Leaning on her cane, she would come to the meetings, and go to the homes of her friends, whom she would arouse to do work and give contributions on behalf of the solitary Jewish orphan. She died in Warsaw, but before passing away, she asked to be buried in Volkovysk. In her will, she left all of her clothing and linens to the institution. The entire orphanage took part in her funeral, which was one of the most imposing in the city. Her husband, Leib Heller, who was also active in our institution, remarked at the funeral that he would count himself fortunate if he could know that after his death, he would have such a funeral, as if he could already see the black clouds hanging over the city.

Aaron & Leah Lifschitz – Members of the finance and development committee. The prominent family of Aaron Lifschitz (Aharon Zelda's) was well known not only in Volkovysk, but also far beyond the borders of their domicile. Reb Aaron and his wife Leah, were people who had an advanced education. He was a prominent activist on behalf of Zionist causes, dating back to the times of Bnei Moshe, and took an active part in all the city-wide initiatives. Himself a merchant-manufacturer, he would nevertheless diligently participate in all the assemblies of the Rabbinate, for whom he would always be one to show the way, relying on his well-reasoned and wise direction. Recalling the plight of the Jewish orphan from his own early years, he could not tear himself away from the activities of the orphanage, and he would often express his feeling, and despite the fact that his health would not permit him to work too strenuously, he nevertheless dedicated much time for the benefit of the institution.

Reb Aaron Lifschitz strove to settle in the Land of Israel, where his daughter Rosa already lived, but he passed away before he could fulfill his desire. His wife, Leah, postponed her own move to the Land of Israel for a time, because of the loss of her husband, and for a specific time, she extended her community efforts on behalf of the orphanage, as one of the most diligent members of the leadership. Even though her health was precarious, she never missed a meeting, and the members of the leadership, who were mostly younger people, used to place great weight on her ideas and advice. She also would not desist from attending every gathering in the city for the benefit of the institution, despite her advancing age and poor health, and she was always among the first to volunteer her active participation. Later on, she did settle in the Land of Israel.

Schraga Feivel Kazatsky – a member of the finance committee. He came to Volkovysk from Vilna in 1935 and opened a confectionery store in the location of Joseph Yunovich's shoemaker's store. With his undertaking, he quickly developed a good name in the city. He took a strong interest in all community initiatives, and his donations and contributions were among the most attractive. When he was first approached for donations he would open his wallet and say: “I am a stranger in town. I don't know how much one has to give for this purpose. Therefore, take what you think I should give, in order that my donation be appropriate.” Shortly after his arrival in the city, he was elected as a member of the leadership of the Jewish Cooperative Bank, and shortly thereafter, also as a member of the leadership of the orphanage. Because he had no children himself, he adopted an orphan girl, whose parents were killed during the Russian revolution. He raised her, and gave her a good education. Unfortunately, at the age of sixteen, together with her adoptive parents, she was killed in Treblinka.

Moshe Zelitsky was a major contractor for lumber transport from Poland to Germany. He was a gentle, understanding and wise man. In 1924 he was selected to become a member of the leadership of the orphanage, and later as president of the building committee. He was always valued for his dedication to the institution and his great concern for the poor orphan. Because he could not dedicate as much time to the institution as he would

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have liked, because of his own financial circumstances, he nevertheless served the institution with his word and pen. His invitations and articles in the Volkovysker Leben about the campaigns that were for the benefit of the orphanage would always bring good results.

Reizl Farber – A member of the committee for development, and clothing and finance. Reizl Farber was one of the most important of the community workers in the city. She was elected to the leadership of the orphanage in 1924, and was very active in the development-clothing-finance committee, where she installed a new system of providing clothes. In 1926, she was elected Treasurer of the institution, a position that she occupied up to the last day the orphanage existed. She was a great help to the development of the institution with he good economic sensibilities.

Mordechai Giller – A member of the building committee – was a merchant with a good education. He was elected to the leadership in 1921, and as Vice President of the institution – in the year 1924. He greatly helped the insti0tution with word and writing. His articles about the institution were carefully read by readers – and you can appreciate that this was of great benefit to the orphanage.

Lipman Itzkowitz – A member of the finance committee – was one of the biggest owners of oil wells in Baku, Russia, where his house was one of the principal meeting places for the young Zionist movement. His wife was born in Volkovysk, and never lost her love for her home town. Whenever she would come for a visit to Volkovysk, she would donate generously to the impoverished Jewish populace. In the time of the Bolshevik regime, Itzkowitz was relieved of his businesses and considerable assets, and only by a miracle, managed to save himself and come to Volkovysk.

By a coincidence, he established a close contact with the orphanage in Volkovysk. He saw the difference between the attention that the Jewish orphan received from the institution, in contrast to the aimless existence in the streets that the orphan had to survive in Russia, and he knew how to place a value on it. He decided to dedicate all his free time, until he went to join his children in the Land of Israel, to the orphanage. His advice and guidance on the issue of the orphanage were always highly valued by all the members of the leadership and proved to be of great importance to the development of the institution. He later emigrated to the Land of Israel. When I arrived there, he was no longer alive. His wife remains active to this day in community work in Israel.

Dr. Rosa Einhorn – A member of the Sanitary-Medical committee.

It is difficult to make peace with the thought that this young family – Dr. Rosa Einhorn, and her husband, Engineer Pshenitsky, and their lovely child Dvora'leh – are no longer alive. Dr. Rosa Einhorn was very active in the leadership of the orphanage and was a diligent member of the Sanitary-Medical Committee. She would take part in every new initiative on behalf of the institution – giving generously on her own, and influencing her friends to do the same. The institution always counted on her support, which always helped attain the objectives of the initiatives on behalf of the orphanage. She was always ready to help in connection with every need, and would always greet those who were needy with a smile on her face.

Chaya Sarah Yudzhik (Yehuda'i) – A member of the education committee. I have already written about her, but no matter how much I would underscore her efforts on behalf of the poorer sectors of the city, I would not do it justice. On the contrary, it is not possible to write enough about her exceptional work in this area. When I took leave of her, prior to my departure for the Land of Israel, together with her husband, my very important friend, Akiva, we took comfort in the thought that we would be able to transplant this good work to the Land of Israel and that her exceptional skills at community endeavors and great energy to do work will be of great

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value to our Land. Regrettably, however, she didn't live long in the Land of Israel. She was active on behalf of the orphanage from the first day it was established, and gave it fifteen years of hard, strenuous and unrelenting work.

Chana Khmelnitsky was a wise lady. She distinguished herself by her gentleness and good nature. When it came to a difference of opinion in the Ladies Society, she gave up her active participation in the institution and helped it out only by giving counsel. Despite this, she felt a very deep sense of responsibility towards the orphanage, and up to her last day, prior to emigrating to Canada, continued to show a great interest in the work of the institution.

Sara Lev, Vice President of the Ladies Society, was also an active worker. Thanks to her deep understanding, she was always helpful in solving the difficult issues of the institution.

Aaron Smazanovich, “The White-Haired One,” was a very accomplished person. Even though he made his living as a shoemaker (in Zamoscheh), he was involved in every municipal initiative. He carried the entire city on his shoulders. He was a member of the leadership in a number of the houses of worship, in the hospital, the old age home, the orphanage, a number of Talmud Torahs, and the societies of “clothing the naked,” “Maot Khittim,” “Provisioning Wood,” the Society of Manual Trades, “Gemilut Hasadim,” and as you can imagine, in the Shoemakers Society. He even made an impact on the banking system. There practically was no leadership body in the city in which Aaron Smazanovich did not participate. He was a very decent person, never once in his life ever saying something inappropriate about anyone else, and was therefore highly regarded in the city.

Dr. Jocheved Barash – A member of the education committee. Many people from the community were active on behalf of the orphanage. A number approached the task of leadership in a hesitating fashion, and left in an unremarkable fashion, leaving behind no trace that they had ever been there. This is because they lacked the necessary sympathy for the orphaned child. All these people did was increase the list of members of the leadership. There were however, among the leadership, members, who because of their commitment and willingness, carved their names into the history of the institution. One of these was Dr. Jocheved Barash. She worked for the institution for only two years, but in that short periods of time she was able to create a good name for herself by her committed work for the benefit of the orphans. By profession, she was a teacher, and as a result, she had the right kind of approach to children. She would often come to the institution in the late hours of the evening, and look over the record of a child, in order to find a way to help that child. She never came into the institution without a present of some sort for this, or that child. It was in this manner that she expressed her tie to the orphans – like a mother to her own children. Peripheral private demands unfortunately compelled her to give up her good work on behalf of the orphans. In 1937, she moved to Bialystok with her family, where her husband became the president of the Bialystok community. As is already known, her husband was Ephraim Barash, later killed along with his two sons in Maidanek, and Jocheved herself was killed at Auschwitz.

The wife of Dr. G. Berman & the wife of Dr. M. Shlackman – Members of the Sanitary-Medical Committee. I had only two years in which I had the honor and opportunity of working together with the above mentioned two members of the leadership. Their entry into the leadership brought with it an animate stream of necessary activities. They were active not only in the Sanitary-Medical Committee, but also in the main body of the leadership as well, and in general, their work made an impact in almost all of the other initiatives of the institution.

Translator's footnote:

1. There is also a Pomeranietz Family in Lisokovo. It is not clear from the text whether these are the same family. Return

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The Dreamers & Builders of Volkovysk

Zalman Leib Slutsky and his mother, Shifra, Reb Akiva's – Zalman Leib was a quiet and peaceful Jew, and a great scholar. His father, Reb Akiva, was at that time already one of the most important people in the city. Reb Akiva was the senior Gabbai of what was at that time the only Jewish institution in the city, the Talmud Torah and Yeshiva. The position of Gabbai was handed down to his only son, Zalman Leib. He guarded the Talmud Torah like the apple of his own eye. He had the oversight of the funds collected in all the charity boxes (pushkehs), and he would count those monies personally, covering the salaries of the teachers, and that of the Headmaster as well as all the other smaller expenses.

His mother, Shifra, Reb Akiva's was a robust example of a typical woman of the older generation. A wise and gentle woman, with good business sense, she thereby earned the trust of everyone that came into contact with her.

Meir & Fradl Shiff. – The Shiff house was close to the Slutsky's. Before the First World War, he was one of the most prominent merchants of the city. He had a very large business in timepieces and gold. Thanks to his extraordinary decent character, he earned everyone's trust, and he carried the greatest financial pledge in the city. He was a great donor to charity, and he would distribute his entire financial pledge, which amounted to five thousand rubles a month, among various charities. Despite the fact that he was very wealthy, he maintained an intimate contact with the less fortunate element of the city, and his home always stood open, on Sabbaths and festival holidays, for all the poor and strangers in the city. He was generous in providing help to the young Jewish people in other towns, who happened to be on duty in Volkovysk, and he would often invite them to his home. He would personally support them, and introduce them to other prominent Jewish people in Volkovysk, from whom they would receive financial assistance. Thanks to Meir Shiff, I became acquainted with the wealthy and well-connected family of Reb Shmuel Shapiro, the Genius of Volozhin, (a father-in-law of the prominent magnates and great philanthropists – the Heller brothers), and I was a constant guest there for Sabbaths and festival holidays, during the first time of my military service in Volkovysk.

Even in later years, when the substantive concern about receiving guests passed into the hands of Gedalyahu Pereshetsky the tailor, Meir Shiff set himself a condition that he must bring home one or two guests for the Sabbath or a festival holiday.

He was a real man of the people in the full sense of the word. His motto was: “Let your hand be giving, and you will eat, spread your good fortune, and it will be good for you.” It was because of this that the common man in the city had great respect for him and trusted him, and saw in him his own proud defender against the regime. And in general, one always took counsel with him regarding all municipal initiatives, giving great weight to his opinion.

He was disastrously ruined after the First World War, and because of his age, he turned over his businesses to his children. He dedicated the last years of his life to the old age home, where he took the position of President.

His wife, Fradl pervaded the city with her good-heartedness. She didn't care for the trappings of authority, but in her own quiet way, she donated a great deal for all causes of the needy, and would influence others to do the same. Her house was always open to the poor and hungry, where she would provide not only a complete and satisfying meal, but also provide a suitable item of clothing, and a generous [monetary] gift with a hearty

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blessing for the road. She took orphan children into her home that had been left abandoned, after the death of her husband's brother and his wife, and raised them with great love and commitment, just as if they were her own children.

Hirsch & Mikhlah Einhorn. – The Einhorn family has a distinguished lineage. The evidence of a genuine Yiddishkeit were deeply rooted in the daily life of the Einhorn family, even after secular education had penetrated there. The study of the Daf Yomi (daily page of the Talmud) remained a sacred obligation to them, and worldly issues, in their house, were intimately woven into the doing of good deeds. Especially active in the family were: the Pharmacist, Hirsch Einhorn, Dr. Benjamin Einhorn, the Lawyer, Chaim Ozer Einhorn, the Dentist, Dr. Rosa Einhorn-Pshenitsky, and Dr. Moshe (Moses) Einhorn, and David Einhorn, who [both] live today in America.

I want to recall here a number of characteristic attributes of the pharmacist, Hirsch Einhorn and his wife, Mikhlah. Hirsch Einhorn was one of the most popular figures in the city. He was constantly occupied in his pharmacy. Not only did he prepare prescriptions, but he would often, literally take the place of a doctor. The poor people who didn't have the money to call a doctor, always knew they could come to Hirsch Einhorn in the pharmacy, tell him what was ailing them, and from him alone, obtain good advice together with medicine, for which he would usually charge a lower price, or – in cases of great need – give it away free of charge.

Also, in those years, when the number of people with any worldly education was quite small, he would help everyone with writing addresses and letters to sons in the military service, and to relatives out of the country. The good-hearted Hirsch Einhorn would do this with great love and great satisfaction. Many people, for whom he would write addresses, would, out of gratitude, throw a coin or two into the alms box for the hospital that hung in the pharmacy.

He was a quiet man by nature, and he would relate to other people with great deference. He would never get involved with politics. Nevertheless, during the First World War, he showed a great measure of interest in the course of the conflict. He brought a detailed map back from Warsaw, and on it, he would mark the positions of the Russian and German armies with pins. The Russian positions were marked with red pins, and the German – with black. And in this fashion, each morning after he finished reading the daily news, he would update the positions of each army. In the city, no one dared to breathe a prediction about a victory of this or the other army, prior to consulting Einhorn's “map.”

During the time of the First World War, I was out of Volkovysk for a full five years. When I returned, Hirsch Einhorn was no longer alive.

Mikhlah Einhorn, Hirsch Einhorn's wife, who came from Lida from the very prominent Kagan family, was one of the most gentle and intelligent women in Volkovysk. She was beautiful and slender, she also radiated her goodness and fine character. She was always active in all help assemblies for the needy, among the wealthy Jews of the city. Even though the death of her husband took a great toll on her health, and curtailed her ability to take an active part in the variety of community initiatives of Volkovysk's Jewish community life, nevertheless, until her last day of life, she continued to demonstrate a deep interest in the development of many community institutions, especially the orphanage, where her daughter, Rosa already was playing such a dominant role. She would – apart from the monthly contributions made by her two daughters, Rosa and Pes'shka for the good of the institution – make her own very generous donation. I would visit her often at her home, and give her reports about our achievements, which gave her a great deal of satisfaction. When the sad news of her passing was announced, the leadership of the orphanage decided that they and the children would

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participate in the funeral, in order to pay final respects to the person who always showed such love and dedication to the poor orphan.

Dr. Feinberg – He came to Volkovysk while still a young man, and very quickly developed a good name for himself, thanks to his strong interest in the Jewish community institutions and his readiness and willingness to come and be generous at all gatherings. He looked upon his medical profession as a holy mission, and he was always foremost ready to treat the indigent sick with no charge. When I would come to ask him for a consideration on behalf one or anther poor person that was ill, he would say to me with a friendly look on his face: “I ask that you always feel free to present me with cases of the indigent sick, who are not in a position to pay for their visits, and I will take care of them free of charge.”

Lawyer Abraham Bliakher – Thanks to his unusually great skill, he quickly gained a reputation as a first class lawyer. He also showed great interest in the community initiatives of the city, and would take an active part in them. The city came to see him as a natural successor to the deceased lawyers: Chaim Ozer Einhorn, Y. Efrat and M.L. Khmelnitsky.

Mikhal Zohn-Mazya and his wife Frum'keh – I knew him yet from his younger days. He was a peaceful and quiet man, and because of his diligent work on behalf of the public welfare, he was later on counted among the most important activists in the city. In his younger years, he was appointed in a Russian fire brigade, and later, after the First World War, he became a prominent member of the municipal government (magistrate), where thanks to his honest character, earned an exceptionally good name for himself. He was also active in the leadership of many Jewish institutions, where he was greatly respected and listened to. His wife, Frum'keh, exuded influence with her good and big-hearted character. She also was active in the leadership of a number of community institutions, where she occupied a very respected position.

Yitzhak Berman – He worked as a bookkeeper for me before the First World War, in my fire insurance office, and later became an employee of the firm, “Kolontai.” Even though he was not a rich man, he always gave generously to all of the charitable institutions.

Dubitsky the Blacksmith from the Grodno Gasse – the good name of the blacksmith Dubitsky deserves to be recorded here, about whom I wish to relate the following incident.

It was in the month of November 1921, when we were getting ready to rent the building for the orphanage. We wanted to rent it as quickly as possible, because the biting winds already foretold of the onset of a difficult and cold winter. But we were missing stonework for the building. I went from house to house, and gathered up stones and pieces of brick that were strewn about. But this by itself could not solve our problem. Wending my way in the street, I encountered the blacksmith Dubitsky. I told him about our quandary, and he immediately responded that I should no longer worry. He just happened to have bought stones and bricks in order to build himself a forge, but, he said, these solitary orphans are much more important, and on the same day, in a couple of wagons, he sent us his own personal construction material, and the bottleneck was immediately removed. It is just because he was himself a modest laborer, that he understood the need so much better, and felt fortunate that he could provide this donation on behalf of the solitary orphan.

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Shayna Chaya die Yoreshteh^[1] – In her poor and old clothes, she looked like a beggar woman, but she was a leading figure in the organization to provide support for the downtrodden. She was the principal supplier of the poor and hungry. Herself scrawny, and with a bent figure, dressed in old clothes, ill-fitting shoes, with an old rag of a kerchief tied around her head, she always gave the impression that she personally was suffering from hunger, and lived off charity. In the city, everyone knew her as Shayna Chaya die Yoreshteh. She was physically frail and didn't take care of her health, because she gave priority to the poor and needy, whose harsh plight she always sought to alleviate. She took a special interest in the balebatim who were at one time prominent but lost their wealth, who suffered from hunger and cold, but didn't want the public to know about their straitened circumstances. Over the course of many years, Shayna Chaya did many good things on behalf of the city's poor. She was known everywhere, and whenever she would come, she was greeted with fine donations. She would return home speedily, because in her poor quarters, she would yet prepare a meal for several poor people, in order to alleviate their hunger. She was one of those truly rare people in this world, who herself enjoyed very little in life, but because of this, gave so much to others. When she died, the Rabbi ordered that the table, on which she used to feed the hungry, be used as the coffin on which to convey her body to interment.

Moshe Lapidus – He was counted as one of the wisest men of the city. He made his fortune by acting as an intermediary on behalf of wealthy Jews who sought was of getting their sons excused from military service... There were a number of Jews in the city who made a living doing this, and Moshe Lapidus was one of them. He became rich, and arranged the construction of a two story building on the Wide Boulevard, along with several other buildings on the plaza. However, he had no children, and in old age, when he was already ill, he decided to give away his entire fortune to community institutions. He invited me into his presence, and presented his plan to me, after which he requested that I put together his will. My recommendation, which he approved, was to establish a committee that would work out all the details of his will. This committee consisted of: Yitzhak Novogrudsky, Jedediah Marotchnik, Yaakov Lifschitz, Abraham Lifschitz, V. Kossowsky and myself. The will was set up with the Notary Public, and legally approved. According to the will, the appointed people on the committee were given the right to manage the estate of Moshe Lapidus, and divide eighty percent of the net value among four institutions – Talmud Torah, Hospital, Orphanage and Old-Age Home – twenty percent to each institution, and the remaining twenty percent was set aside for the smaller institutions of the city, such as Maot Khittim, Provisioning Wood, Visitation of the Sick, Clothing the Bare – each receiving five percent. Moshe Lapidus was very happy with the way his estate was divided. He contributed to the writing of a Torah scroll, which he donated to the orphanage, where a large number of children would always participate in a minyan for prayer on Shabbat and on festival holidays.

Mrs. Clara Niemchik (the Doctor's wife) – She was an unusual woman. Even though she was never a member of the leadership in our institution, she nevertheless took part actively in all its initiatives. Concern for the less fortunate child was one of the great priorities of her life. Her joy was intense when the day care facility for poor children was established, because under the aegis of the orphanage, where it was located, she was certain that the indigent child would find a home. She was one of those on whose help the institution could always rely. Regrettably, she and her only son were brought down by the murderous hand of the enemy.

Bayl'keh Kaplan and her Daughter-in-law – Bayl'keh Kaplan the wife of one of the prominent balebatim,

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Berel Kaplan, and her daughter-in-law, the wife of David Joseph Kaplan, were both members of the leadership of the orphanage as well as the Ladies Society. She was one of the genteel Volkovysk ladies, who gave the greater part of their lives over to community endeavors. Apart from their continuous donations for the benefit of our institution, they practiced the custom of donating a tithe of the output of their flour mill produce for the orphans.

Translator's footnote:

1. It is not clear whether this is the same person as Chana-Chaya die Yoreshteh, mentioned before, but it seems likely. Return

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Two Community Institutions in Volkovysk

Discreet Charity

Volkovysk had always been replete with a variety of charitable institutions, where the needs of the poor of the city could be looked after. No one was permitted to go under from hunger and deprivation, and the poor of the city were not ashamed of coming for the help they needed. But a completely different problem was presented to us, by those balebatim who were abruptly impoverished, lost the source of their income, and were finally put out to hunger and placed in straitened circumstances. They could not come to grips with their new difficult circumstances and thereby come to the city charitable institutions for help and support. Too often, it led to suicides, and the disintegration of the entire family. Incidents of sudden loss of means among the Volkovysk balebatim was a very frequent occurrence in the city. There existed therefore a secret organization in Volkovysk under the name, Discreet Charity, who would, without visibility, come to the aid of those balebatim who fell from prosperity, and help give them a living. In most instances, they provided temporary sustenance, until such time that they were able to get themselves on their feet again. This support was always rendered secretly, with the utmost discretion, through especially trusted individuals, from whom it was known, no information would be received. For many years, the head of this Discreet Charity organization was the purse maker, Yaakov Winetsky of the Wide Boulevard. He lead, for meany years, with this discreet mission of the Discreet charity group and shared his confidence only with a few numbered people who were always prepared to provide a donation or a loan. The burden of the discreet and trustworthy Winetsky, who himself was not rich, was not a light one. These ruined people, whom the outside world often took to be people of means, would themselves never seek assistance. In fact it was the opposite, they would exert all their efforts to conceal their poverty and difficult circumstances from their friends and neighbors. The matter then had to be handled in a discreet and delicate way. And it was the self-effacing, quiet purse maker of modest means that was the most active member and the driving force behind the Discreet Charity. People felt a special power in him, that of a community activist, whom one could trust with all of the most difficult issues, with complete assurance of discretion. Regrettably, her to was killed along with all the other Volkovysk Jews at the murderous hands of the enemy.

Every winter, after the holidays, the members of the Firewood Provisioning Society became active in meeting the objective of providing firewood for poor people for the winter season. A new committee would be elected, in which workers for the community would participate, as well as general individuals, who would look after obtaining enough wood for the poor dwellings in the city. This activity went on all winter, and the colder it was, the more intensively volunteer workers gathered wood, to alleviate the situation of the poor, so that at the very least, their poor homes would have heat. In this connection, Yaakov Winetsky the purse maker also participated in this activity with great deal of involvement, and without fanfare worked for the benefit of the poor.

I worked together with Yaakov Winetsky in both of these previously mentioned institutions until I emigrated to the Land of Israel in 1937. In that same year, on the Eve of Passover, the Rabbi nominated me to be Yaakov Winetsky's confidante. It was only then that I had the opportunity to become acquainted, at close range, with the full scope of the important and confidential work that this quiet purse maker carried out in both of these institutions. At one such confidential meeting, the purse maker revealed to me

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the names of the needy balebatim that the Discreet Charity was supporting. Most of them were thought by the city to be people of means. When the names were read out loud, I lowered my head, and a cold chill seemed to pass over my skin. It was then that I understood why Yaakov Winetsky, the modest community worker was held in such high regard by so many people in the city.

Among the memories of every person, the teachers and pedagogues who gave him his very first education occupy an important place. From olden times on, Volkovysk always had many teachers, from whose ranks it is appropriate to recollect the following: Reb Leib Roneh's-Bartnovsky, Reb Eliyahu Dina's-Lev, Reb Naphtali Hertz Nakhumovsky, Reb Zvi Yaakov Feygl's Rutchik, and many others. Khol HaMoed Sukkot and Passover was always the time when students were recruited and signed up by the teachers. The teachers would call on all the balebatim whom God had blessed with little children, in order to recruit students for their Talmud Torahs. It is interesting to note from several of the names of the previously mentioned teachers, that it was customary for them to utilize the names of their wives, as for example – Reb Leib Roneh's, Reb Eliyahu Dina's, Reb Yaakov Zvi Feygl's. This was usually done by the less strong teachers, who needed the good names of their wives to bolster their popularity. Understand that this was also usually an indication of the atmosphere that was prevalent in their homes.

The better teachers strove to make an impression on the balebatim on the basis of their erudition, with the students that they had already attracted, and those who had gone on to become prominent Torah scholars. It is in this connection, for example, that I wish to remember one of them, Reb Naphtali Hertz Nakhumovsky, who even many years ago, mad such a strong impression on me. In intimate conversations with him, he loved to remind me of the fact that he had the privilege of teaching the Heller brothers (who were then already counted among the richest of the merchants in the city). Reb Naphtali Hertz Nakhumovsky was a very gentle Jewish man, with a weak physical appearance. Therefore, no one could suspect him of being capable of raising a hand against a child, which in those years was recognized as a unique characteristic of Jewish teachers, who then strongly believed in the discipline of beating children, in order to achieve better results. He was reckoned to be among the most popular of the teachers in the city, and enjoyed the loyalty of the best of the balebatim.

After the period of the melamdim, who were the principal educators of Jewish youth in Volkovysk, a new period of secular education was ushered in, with modern teachers. The first teachers in Volkovysk were from Piesk. From that group, it is appropriate to recall the following: Nakhum Halpern, Israel Meir Rubinstein, and a little later on – Jesierski and the prominent teacher Linevsky. They were operating already at the time of the opening up of the Zionist movement, and helped to spread it among the populace in Volkovysk. Reb Nakhum Halpern was actually the first Zionist in Volkovysk, and he not only taught scripture to his students, but also gave himself in an active way to the dissemination of Zionist thought in the city, and personally sold shares on behalf of the Zionist Bank, etc.

In a separate chapter by Dr. Moses Einhorn, an overview is provided of the first Volkovysk families to settle in Israel, beginning with Chaikel Shiff who was one of the very first from Volkovysk to leave their home city to settle in the Holy Land. Here, I will only write about a few people from Volkovysk who were very well known to me.

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Leah Kharakh-Einhorn. – The unnatural annihilation of six million Jews drew into it many indirect victims, who could not come to grips with the thought of this awful destruction. Profoundly shaken by the terrible loss of their nearest and dearest, they themselves died prematurely. One such victim was Leah Kharakh-Einhorn, a lady who was highly regarded by everyone. Even though she had lived in Israel for many years, she never broke off her contact with her old home town of Volkovysk, where her sisters lived with their families. She would often come to visit in Volkovysk, and carried on a continuous correspondence with her family and her friends in her home town. The war caused all contact to be broken, and the hard reality of the gruesome end of her dear sisters and their families, and of the entire Jewish population of Volkovysk, cut her life short.

Eliyahu Golomb. – I remember him as a small boy in his parents' home which I had the honor to visit. Already as a young boy, he was well-developed physically and emotionally. He did not wish to seek education in faraway places, and as a young man, emigrated to the Land of Israel, where he studied at the Hertzeliya Gymnasium. From there he began his journey to his people. He gave many years of tireless labor to help build the country. His greatest accomplishment was the establishment of the Jewish self-defense force – The Haganah – which played such an important and large part in defending the Yishuv, and in the War of Independence of Israel.

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