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The relief organization of Zborow residents in the USA was described somewhere else. Binyamin Reiss especially mentions the help of Zborow people in the US, setting up the “Kitchen' and the Gemach [?] Fund. He mentions several organizers with whom he exchanged letters and became close to.

I personally had the privilege of meeting with past Zborow residents in the US, and participated in a meeting of the organization in 1951 and learned about its activities. The goal of this meeting was assisting survivors of the Shoah. There in fact were two organizations of past Zborow residents. One was established before WWI and was called “First Zborower Association. The other founded much later was called “Zborower Young Mens' Association, Inc.” Regardless of the distance in the years of their creation and also because of the difference (in age) between their founders both included the

DEAR FRIEND: You are cordially invited to attend A CARD and PACKAGE PARTY which will be held SATURDAY EVE, January 13th, 1951, at 6:00PM, at the ROYAL HALL, 83 East 4th STREET, NEW YORK. REFRESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED. We assure you a pleasant and enjoyable evening. We are arranging this affair for the same purpose, namely: TO BUILD A PERMANENT MONUMENT IN ISRAEL in the form of a BUILDING TO ACCOMMODATE SOME OF OUR LANDSLEIT, who are still homeless, and at the same time, give our ZBOROWERS who were fortunate enough to reach the shores of this blessed country, the possibility of commemorating the NAME OF THEIR DEAREST WHO DIED “AL KIDDUSH HASHEM.” Our last call for this noble deed was it seems to our disappointment a “CRY IN THE DESERT.” Here is a pause in which the writer of this letter refers to the Yiddish, where he expressed his feelings in Mame Loshen. We sincerely hope that you will understand and appraise the noble and worthy cause. We are living in stormy times, when not all is “BUSINESS AND PLEASURE AS USUAL.” Think it over. There are many of our towns people, who after years of wandering are still to be looked after in this Country as well as in Israel. We are looking ahead to greet you at the Party. COME AND BRING YOUR FRIENDS WITH YOU. Sincerely yours, THE COMMITTEE N. Okun, Chairman; S. Bettinger, Treasurer; M. Schames, Co-Chairman; Moe I. Heller, Secretary
United Aid Federation for Zborow for the creation of a building (as a memorial) in Israel for Shoah survivors

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former Zborowers of all ages, including those who went to the USA at various times-before and after WWI and even those who arrived after the WWII.

Each organization's objective was to help towns people in need because of illness, old age, etc. The Jewish cemetery in New York includes a special section for Zborow residents. In the past, they had a special synagogue, but after these residents and members of the organizations dispersed, the synagogue disappeared. As mentioned, both organizations offered help to their compatriots-right after WWI and during the years between the two world wars.

Faced with the distress and the needs of the Zborowers-the two organizations were joined under one roof and became “United Relief Federation for Zborow” (in Yiddish: United Aid Federation for Zborow)” and the meeting in which I participated was set up by the unified organization.

The joint organization assisted the Shoah survivors from various camps and included funds to the Zborow organization in Israel to help the Shoah survivors settle in Israel.

In 1950, they started raising funds to build a memorial building in Israel to the Zborow martyrs that would serve as housing for the homeless survivors. For this purpose, they also issued the announcement shown below, but afterwards they neglected this project and it was canceled.

During my visit, I sensed the former Zborowers in the USA identified with Zborow and her past residents around the world, especially in Israel. Many years have gone by since then and it's hard for me to know what the situation is today. As the earlier generation has aged, it is unfortunate that no one has tried to revive this connection.

Announcement from the Relief Committee about the Meeting with the Writer of this Chapter

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This page shows pictures of official stamps of Zborower organizations in Hebrew and Polish. One of them at the bottom left shows the author's name.

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This Parshat is about my deceased friend Naftali Katz, z”l. His personality and devoted community activities are described in another chapter. Here I will relate an event with public implications that involved him and could have been a disaster but ended up well. [Balamut–bag of fodder, placed in front of horses. The chapter title was so named because of its connection to the cart drivers.]

Here is the summary of the story:

On one of the weekly market days, a fight arose between the peasants who came to the market and a Jewish cart owner named Chona Marder. The police intervened and took the cart owner to the city jail. This fight attracted many onlookers and the police stationed themselves with guns there to maintain order and scatter the crowd.

When Naftali Katz found out what happened, he felt that, as a member of the City Council, he should assist the Jewish prisoner. On his way to the city hall, he ran into policemen blocking the way. To enable him to pass he pushed a policeman's gun aside. This careless action resulted in Katz's immediate arrest, accusing him of seizing a policeman's gun. At that time, there were widespread accusations of this type against Jews. The press was full of stories about Jews insulting the Polish state, the Polish army, the national Polish anthem etc, etc. The atmosphere was full of incitements that resulted in many cases of attacks against the Jewish population, including killings. This also caused small and large scale pogroms and harsh judgments for the alleged insults against the saintly symbols of the Polish nation.

As soon as I heard of this incident and confirmed it, I realized the seriousness of this situation and that it could result in riots against Jews. To prevent this, members of the community council went to the district chief and its police. Although the latter bullied us, the district chief promised that he would do his best to maintain peace and order. That night I did not sleep a wink. I met several times with the district chief and had a detailed discussion with the head of the district court. I also visited Naftali Katz in prison (definitely an unusual thing) to discuss the exact details of the event.

The next day was quiet. Much tact and patience was required to prevent an explosion. In the meantime, Katz was transferred from the city jail to the district jail and the district attorney accused him of attempting to take away the police weapon–a very serious accusation that could result in many years imprisonment. But an evaluation of the situation indicated that there was a chance that it could be resolved peacefully. Our hope for this outcome was based on the sympathetic attitude of the president on the district court.

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His name had been Seigelbaum before he reached his high office. Years ago, he converted and changed his name to Dzhveski, but like many other converts, he showed special empathy toward Jews and took their side when possible. We knew that the peasant who insulted the Jew on trial in front of Judge Dzhevski should thank God if he came out of this process in one piece

I was on very friendly terms with the chief of the district court house. So the evening of Naftali Katz's arrest, we had long discussions about the situation. His first and decisive step was to handle the case himself and one of his first instructions was to allow me to visit the prisoner any time, day or night (this was generally not allowed during an investigation).

The next day, I traveled to Lvov to consult with Zionist leaders about a lawyer experienced in this type of case. After discussion with the leaders, including the head of the Lvov Jewish community, Senator Dr. Ringel, it became clear to us that this situation concerned the Jewish community and not just the personal fate of the accused. They promised the required help. Dr. Bromberg, a well known lawyer in Lvov, was hired. He went to Zborow to be close to the events and plan the defense. In the meantime, Judge Dzhveski prioritized the start of the trial and it began exactly three weeks after the incident. Dzhveski's judgments proved our faith in him. He sentenced the accused to three weeks in prison that included time served during the investigation. As a result, Naftali Katz was released immediately. So ended this event in a complete moral victory and with no damage.

Regarding Judge Dzhveski. He converted to advance his career, which is without doubt a despicable deed. But in spite of this, the Jewish community was always fond of him. He was always an Israel devotee and possibly regretted his decision. He enjoyed discussing Jewish topics and strictly observed his parent's yahrzeit. Mr Shmuel Friedman, a rabbi who sold eggs and grains, assisted him in this matter. He would give him the money needed for the observance required by the Jewish laws. He did this for many years.

In connection with this, I have to recount an event told to me by Dr. Yitzchak Kister, a member of the Israel Supreme Court when I visited him in Jerusalem. Talking about olden days of Zborow, we mentioned Judge Dzhveski and found out that in Zborow there was a group of religious Jews who opposed receiving funds from this judge for the yahrzeit observance. When their opposition was rejected, they consulted with Rav Alter Zweig. Judge Kister showed me Rav Zweig's book (“questions and answers”) where, among other things, he discusses Dzhveski's case. Rav Zweig was supportive and he ruled that it is permitted to accept that money to perform his parents' yahrzeit observance. I became very emotional upon reading this answer and was glad that this good person was not wronged.

This concludes the Balamut story that brings out an exciting tale in the life of a dearly beloved friend, and especially gives a feel for the old days.

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Zborow had a diverse population that included Jews, Poles, and Ukrainians. Though the town itself was mostly Jewish, the outlying rural areas were inhabited by a majority of Ukrainians. The Poles and Ukrainians hated each other and were united only by their hatred of the Jews. But there were instances when their mutual animosity turned out to be beneficial to us in our battle to thwart the malevolence they plotted against us. Here is one such incident:

One Sabbath afternoon I was informed, after being sworn to secrecy by Mr. Kurchowsky, a friend who worked in municipal “security,” of a plan by the Ukrainians to post “guards” outside Jewish shops on the next Tuesday weekly market day, to stop non-Jews from entering.

A Declaration of Hate Against the Jewish People

As soon as I heard, I met with several community leaders and it was decided that I should immediately go to the official in charge of the district and report the news to him. I did and he told me that he, too, had gotten wind of the scheme and had ordered the chief of police to investigate this matter.

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We agreed to meet again later in the evening at the restaurant “Ilana” for further discussions. I was assured that secrecy would be guarded at all costs.

The next day, Monday morning, I called for an urgent meeting for that afternoon at the Jewish community hall. I sent a special invitation, in writing, to our Jewish community leaders, with the agenda item: “Various troubling issues” (I have kept one of those invitations to this day). The discussion dealt with the ominous situation and it was decided to enlist the authorities. The Polish authorities responded to our appeal and informed the Ukrainian authorities that their scheme would be met with resistance and that the police would use all means in their power to punish lawbreakers. The Ukrainians, aware of the Poles' abiding hatred for them, understood that the warning was serious and that any blood spilled in a confrontation would be their own. They called off their plans and market day passed in peace.

And so, the hatred between the Poles and Ukrainians served to save the Jews from a fearsome fate.

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Summary of Appeal for Funds Letter Translated by Rena Berkowicz Borow Gmiluth Chesed [Loving Kindness] Association of Zborow Dear Landslayt! [Fellow townspeople] In our previous appeals to fellow Zborowers in America, we have described the economic hardships we are suffering. These words were written in blood and tears and we beseech you to hear our call and respond with loving kindness and prevail upon others to come to our aid with open hearts and hands. We pray that you take our plea to heart and make a greater effort to raise more funds to sustain us and ease our plight. Zborow, 1937 Binyamin Reiss, Chairman, Uri Gerber, Secretary

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