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I was born in Magdeburg, Germany in 1923. My father was a military man,
who served his country in the early 1900s. He was devoted to Germany, as
any patriot would be. Even when Hitler rose to power, my father firmly believed
that his “madness” would not last. My father, like so many German
Jews, was sadly mistaken.
 When I started primary school I was exposed to innocuous Nazism, comparatively
speaking. At worst, some teachers began class with a salute to Hitler.
But when I entered high-school, I was a marked target for many beatings
because I was a Jew. Even though my family hardly observed any Jewish
tradition, we were blatantly Jewish to our Aryan peers.
Many Jewish families scrambled to get their exit papers in order, while
my father continued to believe that the bigotry would pass. Again, he
was misled.
By way of tragedy, my
life and my father’s life were saved. In 1938, my elder sister who
was living in London, died and my father left Germany to tend to her burial.
While grieving alone in London, my father received news of the events of
Kristallnacht and realized that he must get his only son out of Germany.
With the help of a high ranking British military official — who was
also an ardent Zionist and acquainted with my second sister who was living
in South Africa — my father secured papers for my permanent departure
from Germany.
I remained in England for nearly
two decades. I had no money for a formal university education but I learned
a trade involving industrial construction and eventually earned my qualifications
to be a member of the British Institution of Civil Engineers.
I moved to Canada at
the encouragement of a family member who felt it was a better place where
my refugee and Jewish status could not hinder my chances of success. I made
my way to Toronto, where — at the time —there was a need for civil
engineers. I married my first wife and had two children, David and Anita.
In 1974, I married Helen, my beloved companion until today.
I endured a lot of hardship
in my life, but I never denied my Jewish roots. And that is why I chose
to leave a bequest to the Jewish Foundation. I fear for our people and for
Israel. But I wish to do whatever I can to ensure our survival.
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