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[Page 889]
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[Page 890]
by Dr. A. Chomet
Translated by Florence (Feyge) Rubenfeld
Galicia, along with Russia and Romania, was among the countries that, in the second half of the previous century, experienced significant emigration to both European and overseas destinations. However, while emigration from Russia and Romania was driven not only by economic hardship but also by political oppression, the primary cause of emigration from Galicia–where Jews benefited from legal equality–was economic circumstances, particularly the profound poverty of Galician Jewry.
To illustrate this, consider the demographic data from Poland in 1921, in the general population
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[Page 891]
out of a total population of 27,192,674 residents, there were 2,829,456 Jews, accounting for 10.41% of the population. However, in the emigration records for the years 1920–1928, Jews constituted 67.24% of all Polish emigrants–144,110 out of 214,314. In later years, the number of Jewish emigrants declined due to increasing difficulties in obtaining visas for various destination countries. Nevertheless, official records indicate that approximately 200,000 Jews emigrated between 1928 and 1938.
There was no lack of Tarnow Jews in this emigration process. They emigrated to South America, Germany, Argentina, France, Brazil, Israel, Canada, and other countries. One could encounter Tarnow Jews in all corners of the world.
Today, Tarnow Jews in Israel are active in the “Organization of Tarnowers,” with branches in Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Jerusalem. At the head of the organization is the esteemed leader of Tarnow Jewry, Dr. Shmuel Shpan, whose energy and dedication guide all of its activities. Tarnow Jews everywhere pray for his health and long life.
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– in conjunction with a Yizkor Commemoration |
[Page 892]
Regarding the diverse activities of the Organization of Tarnowers in Israel, testimonies are provided in reports from various branches. Aaron Echler, one of the active administrative members in the Tarnow Society in Haifa, writes the following:
“With the end of the Second World War the first refugees began to arrive in Israel. Among them were also Jews from Tarnow. The need arose to help the rescued Jews, provide them with work, an apartment, issue small loans, and generally help set them on their feet. These various humanitarian tasks were taken on by individual people and to their maximum abilities did everything in order to help the needy. Abraham Schedlisker, Dov Singer and the writer of these lines –(Aaron Echler – editor.) – with a great deal of good will and love had dedicated themselves to this work and decided to form an organization.
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[Page 893]
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The organization soon undertook structured efforts to assist those in need, establishing committees in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. In the course of a rather short time we were convinced how necessary it was to establish our hometown organization in order to help Tarnow Jews.
As soon as the first reports of the great Jewish tragedy started arriving, we began the work of searching for the surviving refugees in Russia, Cyprus, and other locations. We gathered clothing, purchased new sweaters and shoes, assemble care packages and sent them wherever appeals for help reached us. In particular, we sent cartons of clothing to Cyprus, addressed to the Jewish Agency, with the request that they be distributed among Tarnowers. We had a great deal of satisfaction with this activity, which motivated us to continue the efforts.
The secretary of the Tarnow Society in Tel Aviv, A. Hedes, writes in his report:
“Tarnow Jews, who came to the country along with all the olim from Poland, also took part in the building and development of the great Jewish city of Tel Aviv.
[Page 894]
Tarnow Jews in a sufficiently large degree settled in Tel Aviv and took on a respected role in all the development domains as workers, salesmen, officials, literary men, artists and columnists.”
During the terrible years of World War II, Tarnow landsleit in Israel, initially in Haifa, organized relief efforts to support Tarnow Jews who had remained in the old country or endured a difficult refugee-life in Russia. Shortly after Haifa, a Tarnow mutual aid society was established in Tel Aviv. Soon after, a mutual aid society was established in Tel Aviv in the home of Chaim Hersh Lichtblau, a distinguished community leader and one of the founders of Ahavat Zion in Tarnow in 1896. Lichtblau had made aliyah to Israel with his family in 1925 and celebrated his 85th birthday that year –may he live until 120–there took place the first launch meeting of several Tarnow landsleit, in which people from Haifa participated, friends Dr. Shmuel Shpan, Avraham Schedlisker, Berish Singer, Aaron Echler and from Tel Aviv: Yaakov Reinhold z”l (died in 1950 in Tel Aviv), Avraham Kohane, Yaakov Bienstock, Kornila and others. This mutual aid society in
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Top row right to left: Z. Fleisher; T. Lichtblau; Dr. A. Chomet Second row right to left: H. Schiff; Y. Bienenstock; A. Hedes; S. Reich; A. Kohane Third row right to left: T. Kimmel; D. Schiff; D. Leibel; A. Rein; A. Rubin Fourth row right to left: H. Hertzberg; H. Zavder; C. Fenner; C. Feller Caption within frame: Vad Irgun Yotzah Tarnow in Tel Aviv |
[Page 895]
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Seated at the dais from right to left: Daniel Leibel, Chava Kesher, Leopold Shinagal z”l, Chaim Hersh Lichtblau, Alexander Hodes, Dr. Shmuel Shpan, Dr. Abraham Chomet, Dr. David Neger, A. Brandstater, Abraham Kohane, Dov Singer |
[Page 896]
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[Page 897]
Tel Aviv determined to help the needy Tarnow landsleit and as much as possible, conducted useful activities.
After the last mass aliyah, when the refugees of Tarnow arrived, the population of Tarnow landsleit increased in Tel Aviv and its environs and in additional meetings and gatherings it was decided to reorganize the “Irgun Yotzah Tarnow.” A new leadership was elected, which over time involved a greater number of active Tarnow landsleit – existing members and new arrivals – who devoted their time and effort tirelessly to the organization. The leadership of the Tel Aviv landsmanshaft is organized as follows:
Honorary President: Chaim Hersh Lichtblau
Chairman: Dr. Abraham Chomet
Secretary: Eliezer Hedes
Treasurer: Shimon Reich
Board Members: Zelig Fleisher, Schop, Abraham Rubin, Dovid Schiff, Chaim Savader, Chaim Hertzberg, Natan Rosenfeld, Yaakov Binenstock, Daniel Leibel, Dvorah Abramovitz (Horowitz), Abraham Kohane, Abraham Rein, Chaim Pfeffer, and Lipa Foner.
Every year, on the 26th of Sivan, on the Yahrzeit of the destruction of Tarnow's Jewry, the organization organizes a memorial commemoration in which nearly all Tarnow landsleit from Tel Aviv and environs participate. On this day when hundreds of Tarnow landsleit gather at the memorial commemoration – we gather
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On the representatives dais from right to left: Chaim Hersh Lichtblau, Eliezer Hedes, Dr. Elihu Tisch, Dr. Yeshuah Shpira, Dr. Abraham Chomet, Daniel Leibel, Abraham Kohane and A. Brandstater |
[Page 898]
and remember the holy souls of our most beloved, who were slaughtered honoring G-d's name. For hours before the commemoration Tarnow landsleit gather on the street in front of the great auditorium of Pioneer House on King George Street in Tel Aviv and share memories of bygone times….when they worked and thrived in the beautiful Jewish city of Tarnow, which is no longer. The leadership also arranged several evenings of entertainment, which brought together Tarnow Jews from all corners of the country.
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First row from left to right: Dr. Henrik Greenberg, Dr. Wolf Mandel, Chanah Fessel Second row from left to right: M. Shtiglitz, Y. Feig, Yonah Schneider |
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