Fani Adelsberg

"They should never experience what we did, G-d forbid. What they did to the Jews was enough. There should never be war."

Name at birth

Fani Torten

Year of birth

1924

Where were you born?

Drohobycz, Poland

Where did you grow up?

Drohobycz, Poland

Name of father, occupation

David, sold children's buggies, cribs, and outdoor furniture

Maiden name of mother, occupation

Malka Just, Homemaker, was a very religious woman

Immediate family (names, birth order)

Parents, Dov, Rose, Sala and me

Who survived the Holocaust?

My sister Rose and me

Bernard was taken to the Russian army and was never heard from again. I survived together with my sister Rose (Kowait). Sala Torten was killed at home in Drohobycz. Sala was a Bais Yakov (religious school teacher); Ukrainians caught her. She had been in hiding with some others. I went to their hiding place with some food; Ukrainians found us, I ran in one direction and Sala the other. Just as Sala was about to be safe, she was caught. My family knew someone in authority and tried to have her released. The man they were dealing with was himself, killed prior to her release and Sala was subsequently killed.

On the second day of Pesach (Passover), October, 1944, I was taken to Auschwitz with my sister, Rose. Previously, we had been under Russian occupation for twenty-two months which was not as bad as under the Germans.

Name of Ghetto(s)

Drohobycz

Name of Concentration / Labor Camp(s)

Auschwitz Birkenau / Krakow Plaszow / Leipzig / Malchow / Ravensbrück / Reichberg / Saxon

Spouse

Norman Adelsberg

Children

Margorie, Nancy, and Sandy

Grandchildren

Ten grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren.

What do you think helped you to survive?

Faith, luck, and common sense. You had to be lucky. I was at Plaszow, the Germans were sending people to Auschwitz. A German took down my name but not my number. When my name was called, I didn’t answer. They did not have my number and so I was spared going to Auschwitz at that time.

What message would you like to leave for future generations?

They should never experience what we did, G-d forbid. What they did to the Jews was enough. There should never be war.