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In Itzkany, a small market town on the former Austrian-Romanian border, there were significant banks, export houses, warehouses, and industries. Through this important border town a significant trade was carried on with Romania. Since there was only an elementary school in the town, parents who wanted to give their children a higher education had to send them to the gymnasium¹ in the neighboring town of Suceava. 80% of the Jewish youth were students in the Suceava gymnasium. In spite of the fact that the Jews were not in the majority in Itzkany, there were always Jewish mayors like Dische and Samuel Hellmann, who later became Kultuspresident² of Suceava. His brother Max Hellmann was a deputy member of the regional parliament (deputy for Dr. Max Fokschaner). Later Dr. Adolf Hellmann, son of Max and nephew of Samuel Hellmann became mayor.

In the years 1923/24 as most of the Jews of Bukovina lost their citizenship, Dr. Adolf Hellmann in his capacity as mayor of Itzkany was successful in adding thousands of Jews who lived in various cites to the citizens roll of Itzkany and therefore able to prove that they had citizenship in a Romanian community. The mayor of Suceava, Cojocaru approved the list given to him by mayor Dr. Adolf Hellmann.

In 1928, the community of Itzkany and the surrounding villages was founded. Adolf Hellmann was community president until his deportation. He was followed by Dr. Josef Goldstein who build a community center and contributed much to the development of the community. Also Dr. Goldstein knew how to use his influence as mayor to protect the Jewish residents. Anyone who did not have Romanian citizenship was deported. For a long time, the industrialist Jakob Roessler was Kultusvorsteher³ and deputy mayor in Itskany. His sons Jose and Bertold Roessler live in Buenos Aires. In 1934 Adolf Kolber became mayor. He was the last Jewish mayor in Bukovina before the deportation to Transnistrien.

The chairman of the Zionist organization was Herr Katz. Members of the leadership were Herling, Pechtholz, Dr. Goldstein and others.

The Jews of Itzkany were deported on October 9, 1941 with the first transport from the Suceava region to Transnistrien. More than 90% of the Jewish population perished there. Many were driven over the Bug by the Germans and then murdered. One mourns the loss of the families Tillinger, Dr. Goldstein, Bernthal, Engineer Ferry Fischler, Stupp, Rakover and the many unnamed victims of the insane Romanian and Nazi German murderers.

As told by Martin Hass, Bat Jam, Israel

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1) The gymnasium is a secondary school that pupils attend for 9 years which leads to the abitur. The gymnasium prepares students for the university.

2) The Jewish community in a town was know as the “Kultusgemeinde.” I simply use the term “community” in my translations. The Austrian regime required that the communities be self governing using a prescribed form of organization including a president (Kultuspresident), vice president, a secretary and several committees. These officers were elected by the Jews of the community. Villages which were not large enough to support such an organization would belong to the community of the nearest large town.

3) A Kultusvorsteher is a member of one of the committees mentioned in note 2, that help to govern a Jewish community.

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