Ym&YWHA de Washington Heights & Inwood

Pearl’s Story

Tu nu'ukulo'ob yéetel nuestro “Socios ti' u kanáanil” noj meyaj financiado tumen le UJA-Federación u Nueva York, le ka contará yéetel entrevistas 6 sobrevivientes locales utia'al comprender ma'alob le k'ajláayo' Amal wíinik.. Táan a entrevistas exhibirán ti' u ju'unil tu'ux yaan u Tabernáculo Hebreo “Experimentando jump'éel k'iin k'atun yéetel asab te'elo': Retratos enérgicos u sobrevivientes le Holocausto”. U ju'unil tu'ux yaan abrirá u jóol le tak viernes 8 u noviembre.

Pearl Rosenzveig has been a member of the Y since 1998.

Yaxil tun Rosenzveig (Photograph by Yael Ben-Zionwww.yaelbenzion.com)

Pearl (Friedman) Rosenzveig was born in Simleu Silvania, Romania on February 22, 1919.  The Friedman’s were the only Jewish family in Simleu Silvania. Her father owned a liquor, tobacco, and grocery store. She has a sister, Esther, who was born on January 21, 1921.  Her mother’s side of the family resided in a town about 3 hours away by train. Pearl remembers her mother as a loving person, who was also a business woman. She described her mother as a conservative Jew.

In Simleu Silvania, there was only one school for all the children to attend, however there was no high school. Pearl recalls attending that school until her 7th year. She was a gifted gymnast and states that gymnastics was her favorite subject in school. When asked if Pearl experienced any anti-Semitism as a child, she remembered a story from her time in school. Pearl and her sister were in a play about Romania and all of the states within the country. Each child was given a state to play, while Esther was given the part of Romania. When the class performed the play for the Prime Minister, the Prime Minister asked the teacher why a Jew was playing the part of Romania.

Even though the Friedman’s were the only Jewish family in Simleu Silvania, they still practiced Judaism. They celebrated every Jewish holiday and they kept kosher. On Friday, Pearl’s father would travel to a nearby Hungarian town where there were more Jews and would attend Shabbat services. On high holy days, Pearl and her mother would travel to a town called Silvaniei to go to synagogue.

When Pearl was 15, the Prime Minister of Romania put restrictions on Jewish owned businesses. The Friedman’s lost their business and was forced to move to Simleu Silvaniei. Pearl attended community college in Simleu Silvaniei, but was told that she failed her classes because she was a Jew. This did not make any sense to Pearl because when the gym teacher was absent, Pearl was called to replace her because she was such a talented gymnast. Even though Pearl tried to fight her way to stay in school, she did not win. By age 17, Pearl left the school. When she realized she had limited opportunities in such a small town, in her early twenties Pearl moved to Budapest where one of her uncles lived. She needed to learn a skill in order to survive so Pearl learned to sew. Pearl wanted to maximize her opportunities to make a living, which is why she decided to move to Budapest. She took great interest in sewing, but wanted to improve so she took a class in pattern making. Pearl remembers that later on that she began sewing yellow stars onto clothing. She recalls, “When we were in the ghetto, we needed yellow stars on each item.” Pearl had been told many times that she did not look like a Jew. When Jews were unable to shop at stores, Pearl made the courageous decision to take off her yellow star and go shopping. One time she was stopped by a Hungarian police officer who asked her why sometimes he sees her with a yellow star and other times without the star. He told her, “You’re not Jewish. Take that star off forever.”

While in Budapest, Pearl was able to correspond with her parents by sending letters. However, she lost touch with her parents in the early 1940’s and Pearl knew that she had lost her parents forever. When reflecting on her feelings about the war, Pearl believes that the Hungarian government is responsible for the deaths of the Jews in Hungary.

After being in the ghetto for about two and half years, Pearl and the rest of the Jews were rounded up. She prepared by packing up her belongings. Pearl was sure to pack her mother’s jewelry and all the valuables that she had. In addition, she bought as much nonperishable food as she could so that she would not go hungry. One morning, the police came to the door and told her that she had five minutes to gather her belongings and leave. The police gathered a few thousand Jews in a lot. Pearl recalls that the police were extremely unorganized and eventually had to send all of the Jews home because they did not know what to do with all of them. She hoped that this would be the end, but it was not. In October 1943, she heard the knock on her door and once again she left the house. This time, it was for good. She remembers walking for what felt like forever. There were several thousand Jews that were forced to march day after day. When they would stop at night, Pearl remembers that they were given very little to eat. They served liquids only and she remembers the food being disgusting. She had no choice but to eat it. The Hungarian police orchestrated the march. Pearl felt disappointed, sad, and weak. She found the strength to carry on each day throughout the march. On the march, Pearl saw a woman coming out of her house. Pearl ran over to the woman and offered to give her the sweater she was wearing in exchange for any food. Pearl did not care that winter was coming. She was so hungry; all she could think about was getting food. The woman went into her house and came out with a lot of food for Pearl and she took the sweater.

Pearl recalls the march lasting from October to December. The weather got so cold, Pearl is glad that she did not lose her fingers on the march. She knew that she was walking to Germany, but she did not realize that she was walking to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. She reached Bergen-Belsen in January 1944. When she got to the concentration camp, all of Pearl’s jewelry including her earrings and watch were confiscated. She was stripped of everything; including her clothes. She was given clothing that was full of lice. On the days that it would snow, Pearl would strip herself down to nothing and wash herself with soap in the snow. When she was done, she had to put her dirty clothes back on and go back to the barracks. When more people would come to the camp, Pearl would do what she could to make room for people in the barracks. This would leave her without a place to sleep. She stayed in the cold corridor and became very ill.

When the camp was liberated, Pearl saw British soldiers coming to the camp. She recalls them intimidating the German soldiers. After a week, Pearl was moved from Bergen-Belsen to a better facility in Germany. She remembers being fed a little better. Everyone was still very sick from the filth of the camp. A nurse came to help the refugees including Pearl who had come down with shingles. Eventually the Swedish came and opened their borders to the refugees and offered assistance to them. In 1945, Pearl decided that she wanted to go to Sweden. She was taken there along with other refugees. The refugees were taken care of by doctors and admitted to hospitals if they needed extra medical attention.

The refugees were put into Swedish summer homes outside of Stockholm. She recalls being placed with Czech, Hungarian, and Romanian refugees. She stayed there for two years. Pearl was very happy when she was there. She was given new clothes every season so she could be comfortable. After several years in Sweden, Pearl wrote to an uncle she found in New York. Her uncle immediately sent her $100. She used this money to buy herself a watch and to get her teeth fixed since they had been damaged from the war. Once she got herself fixed up, Pearl asked her uncle to help her come to America. Even though Pearl loved her life in Sweden, she wanted to be in New York with her family. She thought she would have to wait years to get to America because the Romanian quota was so small, but she and her uncle were able to work out a way to get Pearl to America as quickly as possible. The first affidavit that her uncle was able to get for her was not enough to get her into the country so her uncle asked a friend of his for help. This friend helped get Pearl an adequate affidavit to come to America.

Ti' junio 14, 1948, Pearl arrived in New York City. Her aunt was at the harbor waiting for her. She recognized Pearl by the pictures she had sent. She then lived with her aunt and uncle, and worked as a seamstress.

Pearl never imagined that she would marry an American man. She recalls that she met her husband when she was visiting a friend. She married Max Rosenzveig and they had 2 daughters. Pearl has six grandchildren.  


This interview was transcribed (from a previoulsy recorded interview) by Halley Goldberg of the Y’s Partners in Caring initiative and belongs to the YM&YWHA u Washington Heights yéetel Inwood. U búukinta'al le xooko'obo' ma' u consentimiento tuméen ts'íib tuukulo'oba' ti' le ka bix u le le entrevistado u estrictamente prohibido.. Obtenga a wojeltik yóok'ol le cha'ana' Partners in Caring waye': http://ywashhts.org/partners-caring-0 

Tabernáculo Hebreo U ju'unil tu'ux yaan Armin yéetel Estelle Gold Wingtu orgullosa asociación yéetelle YM&YWHA u Washington Heights yéetel InwoodInvita u nuestroNoviembre leti' Diciembre, 2013 Exhibir“Experimentando jump'éel k'iin k'atun yéetel asab te'elo': Retratos enérgicos u sobrevivientes le Holocausto” yéetel fotografías yéetel esculturas ti': YAEL BEN-ZION,  PETER BULOW YÉETEL ROJ RODRIGUEZTu nu'ukulo'ob yéetel jump'éel mayaj yaabilajech ti' memoriati' le75° Aniversario ti' le Kristallnacht - le áak'aba' ti' le Cristales RotosYéetel ka Recepción u Apertura ti' le Artista, Tak viernes, 8 u noviembre, 2013 7:30 p'el.m.

 Jump'éel declaración ti' le yéetel :  ” Ti' décadas, washington Heights leti' Inwood yéetel u sido, ka Chúuns siendo, jump'éel tu'ux u yookoj maaki' utia'al u aquellos ku kaxtiko'ob tu'ux u yooko, respeto ka comprensión. Ya'ab le ku yokolo'ob k jóol yéetel ku táakpajalo'ob ti' k programas u vivido pruebas yéetel tribulaciones mix peek je'el u páajtal k comenzar u tuukul..  Utia'al u yane', máaxo'ob formarán ti' le exposición, juntúul le horrores u k'uchul u beel k'ajóolta'an tumen le yóok'ol kaaba' yéetel bey "El Holocausto" – le asesinato sistemático 6 millones judíos Europa.

To'one' ti' le ka k k'a'ajsik le pasado, honrar le kajlajo'ob yéetel kíimo'ob ti' le k'iin, ka salvaguardar u jaajil yo'osal le yáax tumben ch'íibalo'ob. Tuméen le ma'alob k mismos yéetel k paalal, K'a'abet k transmitir le tsikbalo'obo' u aquellos u ts'o'ok u experimentado le males le k'atun. Yaan lecciones kaambal yo'osal le futuro.  Le entrevistas táan documentadas tumen Halley Goldberg, jump'éel supervisor le cha'ana' "Partners in Caring".  Le cha'ana' Páaybe'en bin páajtal óolal ti' Jaajal generosa subvención u UJA-Federación u Nueva York, diseñado yo'osal u ma'alo'obkíinsiko'ob le bix u bisikuba'ob yéetel le sinagogas ti' Washington Heights Inwood. “

K exposición yila'ob conjunta ye'esa'al retratos ka entrevistas u sobrevivientes le Holocausto, Hannah Eisner, Charlie ka Lilli Friedman, Yaxil tun Rosenzveig, Fredy Seidel yéetel Ruth Wertheimer, Tuláakal le ju'unil ku miembros le Tabernáculo Hebreo, juntúul congregación judía u ya'ab judíos alemanes huyen ti' le nazis yéetel yaan de taal Amerika, Ku unió u finales le k'iino'oba' 1930.  Ku ts'o'okole', bey xan honraremos u sobreviviente le Holocausto Gizelle Schwartz Bulow.- na' k artista Peter Bulow yéetel sobreviviente ti' le Segunda k'atun Mundial Yan Neznanskiy – yuum le Director u Programas ti' le yéetel, Victoria Neznansky.

Jump'éel ti' yaabilajech ti' le sábado, yéetel altavoces, tu memoria le 75 aniversario le Kristallnacht (áak'ab le cristales baakoobo') precede le Chúun u le exposición Gold Gallery leti' ka meyaj:Le áantajo'ob ku káajal le puntualmente ti' le 7:30 PM. Tuláakal táan invitados u asistir.

Utia'al u horario máaxo'ob u u ju'unil tu'ux yaan k'áato'ob wa tia'al a wojeltik, llame ti' le sinagoga ti' le212-568-8304 wa wilHTTP://www.hebrewtabernacle.orgDeclaración le artista: Yael Ben-Zionwww.yaelbenzion.comYael Ben-Zion síijil ti' Minneapolis, MN ka criado ti' Israel. Jach graduada le cha'ana' xook Generales ti' le múultuuno' Internacional u Fotografía. Ben-Zion ts'o'ok u k'a'am ya'abkach becas yéetel premios, asab ts'oonak u béeychajal Puffin yéetel u NoMAA, yéetel u mayajo' ts'o'ok sido expuesta ti' Estados Unidos yéetel Europa. Ts'o'ok u a'ala'an ka'atúul monografías u mayajo'.  Ku yaantal ti' Washington Heights yéetel u yíicham., yéetel u gemelos.

Declaración le artista:  Pedro Bulow: www.peterbulow.com

In na' ch'úupalo', U yaax yaantal ta'akubae' ti' le Holocausto. A lo largo de ja'ab, u yaan, wa ku imaginé u sido u yaan, Ts'o'ok lelo'oba' ts'o'ok jump'éel nuxi' influencia tin. Le influencia ku refleja tuukulo'oba' tin kuxtal máaxo'ob ku meyajo'ob bey ti' in kuxtal meatsil.. Jsíijene' ti' le India, Viví ka ka'ach juntúul paal chan ti' Berlín ka emigré, USA yéetel yúumo'ob ti' le ts'o'oka'an 8.  Yaan jump'éel Maestría Bellas Arteso' escultura. Xan ya'ab u receptor jump'éel subvención ku in permitirá meentik jump'éel meyaj ku limitado bustos bronce sobrevivientes le Holocausto..  Much meentik in wojéeltik wa táan interesado ti' u ti' le tsol.

Declaración le artista :Roj Rodríguez: www.rojrodriguez.com

In wíinkilil meyaj refleja in náachil tak Houston, TX – tu'ux jsíijene' yéetel crecí – u Nueva York –'ux, expuesto u etnia, u jejeláasil miatsil yéetel socioeconómica yéetel u visión chen yóok'ol le inmigrantes– Tin kaxtaj jump'éel respeto renovado tumen le miatsil ti' tuláakal. Ts'o'ok in sido aprendiz fotógrafos ma'alob establecidos, viajó tumen le yóok'ol kaaba' extensamente yéetel colaboró yéetel ya'ab le ti' j-ka'ansajo'ob ti' le jach yáax. Tak enero, 2006, In xook bey fotógrafo independiente u ts'o'ok convertido ti' jump'éel tuukula' u asumir múuch'meyaj fotografía máaxo'ob ku surgen u in kajnáalo'ob comprensión u páajtalil ku compartimos le yóok'ol kaaba' yéetel ejercitamos k creatividad bey jump'éel tuláakal.

Tu yo'olal le yéetel
Establecido ti' 1917, le YM&YWHA de Washington Heights & Inwood (le yéetel) Jach noj bejo' k'iiwik te' mejen kaajo'obo' judío Xaman u Manhattan, ku táanlaj junmúuch' étnica yéetel socioeconómicamente diverso, ma'alobkiinsik le ma'alobil kuxtal máako'ob ti' tuláakal le edades yéetel áantajo'ob ts'áabal u críticos yéetel ku innovadores ichil toj óolal., Bienestar, educación, ka justicia ts'aa, yaan u yúuchtal u promueve u jejeláasil yéetel le inclusión, yéetel u kanáanil le necesitados.

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Ym&YWHA de Washington Heights & Inwood

Pearl’s Story

Tu nu'ukulo'ob yéetel nuestro “Socios ti' u kanáanil” noj meyaj financiado tumen le UJA-Federación u Nueva York, le ka contará yéetel entrevistas 6 sobrevivientes locales ti'

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