Paul Claus was born in 1922 in Chicago, Illinois. He was the eldest of three children. Both his father and brother worked for the railroad. Paul pre-empted the draft by negotiating a better assignment with army recruiters. Paul reported to Santa Anita, California. He learned machine maintenance and spent two months learning survival techniques in … [Read more...] about Paul Claus
Max Gendelman
Max was born August 15, 1923 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was raised in a strictly kosher home with a Zionist father. He was in ROTC at the University of Wisconsin and was sent for basic training in Ft. Lewis, Washington. The General recognized his high IQ and asked him to oversee the training of others. He was transferred to South Dakota and then … [Read more...] about Max Gendelman
Lloyd Rauch
Lloyd Rauch was born in 1925 in New York City. Lloyd’s family was Jewish. He was in college when the war broke out, and he was drafted at 18 years old. Lloyd went overseas in February 1945 and moved through France, Belgium, and Holland. Lloyd and his unit then went on to Germany. On April 29, 1945 they saw a structure that resembled a prison. It … [Read more...] about Lloyd Rauch
James Burliss
James Burliss was born in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1923. After high school, James became an auto mechanic. In April 1943, James was working for a garage when he was drafted. James fought in Italy, France, and Germany. He was wounded in battle in Anzio, Italy and received a Purple Heart. James received several other medals. James fought in the … [Read more...] about James Burliss
Irving Berzon
Irving Berzon was born in 1923 in New York City to Jewish parents who raised him religiously. After a year of college, Irving worked as a junior engineer at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. In March 1943, nineteen year-old Irving was drafted into the United States Army. Irving’s previous training earned him a variety of skilled assignments and he was placed … [Read more...] about Irving Berzon
Anthony Del Duca
Anthony Del Duca was born in 1926 in the town of Chieti, Italy to a Catholic family, but mainly grew up in Detroit, Michigan. He had quite a few Jewish friends while growing up. When he was eighteen years old, Anthony was drafted into the army. After his training, Anthony was shipped overseas to Le Havre, France. He participated in a number of … [Read more...] about Anthony Del Duca
Vincenta Bukowski
Vincenta Bukowski was born in 1913 in Wrzesnia, Poland. She was raised Catholic, and her faith in God and Jesus Christ helped her survive through the traumatic and horrific years she spent in a concentration camp. The Germans occupied Wrzesnia in 1941 when Vincenta was 28 years old. Germans came to her home demanding compliance of her brothers … [Read more...] about Vincenta Bukowski
Steen Metz
Steen was born in Odense, Denmark to Magna and Axel Metz. He was not brought up in the Jewish faith as Odense did not have a Jewish community, temple, or school. Instead he participated in the Lutheran religion which was Denmark's official religion. For Steen, the war began when he was almost 5 years old. It became intensely personal when Steen, … [Read more...] about Steen Metz
Sidney Kaye
Sidney Kaye was born in 1931 in Manchester, England as Sidney Cleebaner. His family was Jewish Orthodox and of Eastern European descent. The family attended synagogue in Manchester. Sidney did not recall anti-Semitism before the war. However, he remembered the war’s affect on him and his family: the sound of sirens, listening to Churchill’s … [Read more...] about Sidney Kaye
Sabine Van Dam
“My parents, Nuchem Goldrosen and Rosa Bleich, married in Krakau, Poland and went to live in Berlin. Nuchem was a journalist and foreign correspondent. My only sibling, Hadassah, was born in Berlin in 1933. Soon afterwards, they left Germany for the Hague, Netherlands, where I was born in 1936. We led a comfortable life there. The Germans … [Read more...] about Sabine Van Dam