Monday, July 12, 2010 Hadera, Israel
My name is Ada Wolfovitch Rakocz
I was born in Gombin in 1928
My parents were Mania Wolfovitz and Marek Wolvovitz and my sister Bella Wolvovitz I’m the only survivor from the Gombin’s ghetto.
My story told briefly:
When the German invaded Gombin they immediately started to limit the Jewish activity. We were obliged to ware the Magen david symbol on the back and front of our cloths. We were instructed to bring all valuable staff such as jewelry etc’ into the local police station. The German who lived outside gomin before the war started were called” folk Dutch”. They came into the city and invaded the Jewish houses and throw out the Jewish habitants of these houses.
The remaining Jewish population took care of the new refugee people. These events took place in the early 1940.After that a new ghetto was created in gombin where the all Jewish community lived together.
I lived in this ghetto with my grand father Izak Glase and grand mother Lea Glatse . Three brothers of my mother: Leon, Mietek and Shaul with their wifes and children and the sister of my mother Anga Revzin her husband Loleck and her sons Yusek and Bella.
We all lived all in the a small apartment.
A big church in gombin was destroyed by bombs. a small group of Jewish prisoners used to go out to clean up the after bomb walls and bricks. In a return they received pieces of bread and small plate of soup.
My mother use to cosmetically change my look so I would look older in the eyes of the Germans.
My father marek Wolvovith was a member of the gombin municipally before the war started. He was very appreciated and estimated among the Jewish And Polish Local community. After first world war he lived 10 years in the usa (1914)and came back to Gombin in the end of the war. He use to be the main English speaker and writer among the Jewish community.
One day somebody called him to come to the Gestapo headhunter in gombin. We have decided that my father and sister will move to Warsaw and me and my mom will stay in Gombin.They came to look for him and once they didn’t find him they took me for investigation and asked about him. I was bitted a ,my nose was broken but I didn’t revile where he was. I was locked in a dark basement for 48 hours and was released only when my mom paid for my release. The life in the ghetto started to be very difficult. Germans executed Jewish people each day and never released them back. Few of my uncles disappear that way. Winter was difficult with extreme cold conditions. Many died from typhus and Dysentery . Food was hard to get. Germans use to hang Jewish people in public and we were forced to watch It.
One of the nights (1941) someone knocked on the door and told my mom and me to run away on a horse and carnage that waited outside.
A priest gave us a birth certificate of other r people and we escaped from gombin without a plan. We escaped t to sochjev on the -border of gubernia. We wanted To reach Warsaw. We stayed 2 nights with a local farmer afterwards we took the train to Warsaw.
It was the beginning of the Warsaw ghetto. When we told the people that no Jews were left in Gostinin , Pwotz , Torun , nobody wanted to believe.
I will not tell you how I made it further the way ,It will be long letter if I did. My family was deported to the concentration camp in Chelmno and they all died there. The only one who survived were my sister and my self.
The attached photos are reminders to my story:
Be blessed for your important initiative !!!
Warm regards
Ada Rakocz
Herzel st 93
Hadera 38421
Israel
