Meir S. Holocaust testimony

Videotape testimony of Meir S., who was born in Ra?da?ut?i, Romania in 1928. He recalls visits to his grandparents in a nearby village; antisemitic harassment by other students; his sister's birth in about 1939; moving to Soviet-occupied Chernivt?s?i in 1940; attending school; German invasion in 1941; ghettoization; forced labor with other children; train deportation to the Dniester River; several weeks on a forced march to Bershad?; many deaths en route; assisting his father make candies and selling them; his mother's disappearance (for a long time he harbored hope she survived); his father's death from typhus; living with an aunt and her five year old daughter; his aunt's death; his own severe illness; his cousin's death; placement with his sister in an orphanage; transfer to an orphanage in Balta in winter 1942; his sister's death on Yom Kippur 1943; clandestinely leaving the ghetto orphanage to obtain extra food from nearby Italian soldiers for whom he and others from the orphanage did errands; sharing it with the other children; celebrating holidays; train transfer with other children in March 1944 to Ias?i; wonderful treatment by the local Jews; transfer to Baca?u, then to an orphanage in Bucharest for a few months; departure for Israel in December 1944; living with an aunt until 1948; military enlistment; and remaining in the army until 1972. Mr. S. notes his very poor health for some time after the war resulting from his wartime starvation and illnesses; his relatives helping him overcome emotional problems; visiting his home in Romania, the only "memorial" or "grave" he has for his family; and sharing his story (not in detail) with his wife and son, but not with others.

3 videocassettes