I Am a Star (5 page)

Jewish children were no longer permitted to attend regular schools. I had to walk two miles to Goeppingen, a larger neighboring town, and then travel one hour by train to attend classes in Stuttgart. This was the only Jewish school in the province. I needed special travel permission papers for this trip, since Jews were no longer allowed to move freely.

This trip became even more hazardous, when, on September 1, 1941, Jews were made to sew the yellow Star of David on their clothes as a distinguishing mark. On the star the word
Jude,
which means Jew in German, was written in Hebrew-like letters. Papa told me to sit in such a position on the train so as to “naturally” cover my yellow badge, even though it was strictly forbidden to hide that “mark of shame.” This was not always possible, and other children taunted and heckled me. Some people took pity on me, though. One day a Christian woman left a bag of rolls next to my seat. She must have felt sorry for the little Jewish six-year-old child traveling such a long distance by herself.

The “Final Solution,” the Nazi plan to liquidate all the Jews in Europe, began for us in 1941. Rumors of our “resettlement” were the talk of the day. Many people made frantic attempts to leave Germany, but to no avail. All borders were closed to us.

Deportations to the “East” began in late 1941. One morning, my grandmother, my parents, and I received our orders for transport. Papa was a disabled veteran of World War I and used this as a plea for us to be spared. He succeeded, but we were not able to help my grandmother. She and most of my classmates were sent to Riga, Latvia. I shall never forget our tearful good-byes as we watched her descend the stairs in the Stuttgart railroad station until she was out of view. I would never see her again. Almost all of these unfortunate people became victims of the Einsatzgruppen, in a forest near Riga. They had to dig their own graves before they were shot.

We were forced out of my grandparents’ home in Jebenhausen and relocated in one of the “Jewish houses” in Goeppingen. My parents were sent to work for very little money in a women’s undergarment factory. My school in Stuttgart was closed before I completed the first grade.

The war was in full gear in 1941. We were awakened many nights by the screaming air raid sirens, which always badly frightened me. Most of the Allied bombs at this time were dropped far from where we were living, however.

Finally, our turn to be deported came on August 22, 1942. There was no longer any way to avoid a transport. I was now number XIII-1-408, a person without any citizenship. We packed our meager belongings according to the very specific instructions we were given. All our money was taken from us. The police came to our apartment. Mama was told to place our keys on the dining room table. The official then said, “Now you can go!”

We were herded into a school gymnasium in Goeppingen and searched. My greatest fear was that the SS would take away my doll, Marlene. She had been a gift from my grandmother, the only token of remembrance I had of her. The officials removed Marlene’s head to see if any valuables were hidden inside her hollow body, but they finally decided to let me keep my doll. I was not so fortunate, however, with a wooden decorative pin. An SS officer took a liking to it and tore it off my dress.

From Goeppingen we were taken to Stuttgart, which was the main gathering place for Jews who were being transported. I was the youngest of almost twelve hundred people in the group. We were housed in a large hall at Killesberg which was usually used for flower shows. We bedded down for two days on the bare floor.