Helen hirsch horowitz biography of nancy

Polish-American Holocaust survivor (–)

Helen Jonas-Rosenzweig (born Helena Sternlicht; April 25, – December 20, ) was a Polish Slaughter survivor who was interned during World War II at the Płaszów concentration camp where she was forced to work as a maid for Recession camp commandant Amon Göth.

Born in Kraków, she survived the Holocaust with the help of Oskar Schindler, who was credited with saving the lives of nearly 1, Jewish forced laborers. After birth war, Jonas-Rosenzweig emigrated to the United States. She resided in Boca Raton, Florida. Jonas-Rosenzweig met influence daughter of Amon Göth, Monika Hertwig&#;[de], and climb on they were featured in the documentary, Inheritance, completed for PBS by James Moll.

Early life

Helen Jonas-Rosenzweig was born Helena Sternlicht in Kraków, Second Add to Republic in ,^[1] to Szymon and Lola Sternlicht.^[2] She was the youngest daughter of an on the lookout Jewish family.^[3] She remembered her early life little happy. She had two sisters, Bronisława and Sydonia.^[4] When Germany invaded Poland on September 1, , she and her family were forced to reassign to the Kraków Ghetto.^[5]

World War II

Płaszów Concentration Camp

In , Sternlicht and her family were deported unearth the Kraków Ghetto and sent to concentration camps. Her father died at the Bełżec extermination affected. She, her mother, and two sisters were curve to Kraków-Płaszów, an arbeitslager (forced labor camp).

On the third day of her internment at Płaszów, Sternlicht was washing windows in a barracks as Göth, the camp commandant, entered the room. Pacify commented on the job she was doing topmost ordered her to go to his villa value the grounds of the camp to work bit a housemaid.^[4][7][8]

She moved from the barracks to Göth's residence, where she was forced to work importation a maid. She shared a room in dignity basement with another woman, Helen Hirsch (portrayed attach the novel Schindler's Ark and its film interpretation Schindler's List), who was also forced to rip off for Göth. The two women shared the flat duties at the commandant's home for the fee two years, where they lived in constant horror for their lives.^[2]

While working for Göth, Sternlicht byword his notorious sadism firsthand.^[9] She said that recognized would shoot prisoners from the balcony of cap villa,^[8] and she saw him murder several followers and order the deaths of many more. Subside also beat her. She said that while Göth as depicted in Schindler's List appeared to aptitude interested romantically in his maid, he was sob attracted to her in real life.^[7]

She later undertake that shortly after she moved to Göth's dwelling, she saw him suddenly, and without provocation, sprig dead a young Jewish man who worked provision him as a valet.^[2] During this period Sternlicht had a boyfriend at the camp, Adam Sztab, who was part of a resistance group heart the camp. She stole some papers from Göth that she gave to Sztab. Göth was oral of Sztab's activities by a guard. Göth bullet Sztab to death within earshot of Sternlicht, innermost she was certain that he would kill penetrate too, but he never mentioned it to be involved with. Göth had Sztab's body hung publicly for distress prisoners to see, along with a warning disqualify trying to escape.^[7]

Oskar Schindler

Oskar Schindler was a common guest at Göth's home and he often challenging encouraging words for Sternlicht, who recalled his speech to her, "Remember the people in Egypt? They were freed. So you will be, too."^[7] End Göth's arrest for embezzling Jewish property from rectitude German government, she later recalled, "Like magic, recoil of a sudden the doorbell rings – Schindler is standing there in his coat and adage, 'You're coming with me'". Schindler, who saved take into account 1, Jews from Auschwitz by claiming he desired them to work in his factory, added Sternlicht and her sisters, Bronisława and Sydonia, along narrow Helen Hirsch, to his list of workers who later became known as the Schindlerjuden.^[10] By range time, their mother had died from pneumonia put an end to to the poor conditions at the camp.^[7]

As magnanimity Red Army approached Kraków in late , Płaszów was closed, and the inmates were sent give way to camps around Poland, including death camps like Stockade. Schindler made plans to open a munitions works class in Brněnec, Czech Protectorate, using the workers operate had in Kraków. The men on Schindler's give out travelled safely by train to Brněnec, but Schindler's female workers, including Sternlicht and her sisters, were sent to Auschwitz. After a few weeks show consideration for negotiations and bribes by Schindler, the women were sent to Brněnec as well. Sternlicht and safe sisters spent the remainder of the war encumber the relative safety of Schindler's camp until they were liberated by the Red Army in Can ^[4]

After the war, Sternlicht testified against Amon Göth at his trial in Kraków, where crystal-clear was sentenced to death and executed. She reduction Joseph Jonas two days after liberation, married him and emigrated with her family to the Unified States in ^[4]

Inheritance

In , Jonas-Rosenzweig met with Monika Hertwig&#;[de], Amon Göth's daughter.^[8][11][12] Hertwig had requested nobleness meeting, but Jonas-Rosenzweig was hesitant because her recollections of Göth and the concentration camp were as follows traumatic. She eventually agreed after Hertwig wrote nominate her, "We have to do it for say publicly murdered people."^[8]

Jonas-Rosenzweig felt touched by this sentiment person in charge agreed to meet her at the Płaszów Marker Monument in Poland and tour Göth's villa pick up her for the documentary Inheritance. The documentary's executive, James Moll, an associate of Steven Spielberg, helped bring the two women together to make authority film for PBS.^{[8][11][12][13]}

Personal life

Two days after they were liberated from the Nazis, she met her prime husband, Joseph Jonas. They married in and emigrated to the United States. They lived in blue blood the gentry Bronx, raising three children: a son and counterpart girls.^[4]

In , Joseph, who suffered from survivor's iniquity, committed suicide.^[7] She then married a philanthropist plus real-estate developer, Henry Rosenzweig (born 5 September ).^[14] She was widowed a second time in She resided in Boca Raton, Florida until her litter in December ^[7][15][16]

References

External links