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On November 11, 1940, six brave young men left
their homes and families in Luboml and were
inducted into the Russian army. For Harry
Bergerbest, Bebela Brief, Moishe Dubetsky,
Kalman Lachter, Avrom Lichtmacher, and Yankl
Melamed, family goodbyes were painful and the
uncertainty of seeing their loved ones again was
great.
The six friends depended on each other's
companionship as they traveled to Sverdlovsk in
the Ural Mountains in Russia. There they were
assigned to the same unit to endure three months
of basic training. The friends replaced their own
families with each other. They sought comfort in
retelling hometown stories and reliving childhood
memories.
After training, they were stationed in
Ashkhabad, Russia, near the Iranian border. In
June, 1941, Germany invaded Russia. Soon after,
the six friends were transported to the front
lines of combat in the region of Smolensk, Russia.
Five of these friends lost their lives in gallant
battles against the Nazis. Harry Bergerbest
lost another family.
For the first time Harry Bergerbest was without
his friends. During the next eight months,
Harry was transferred to several different battalions
in Russia. In July, 1942, he was sent to the
coal mines of Siberia.
SIX BRAVE MEN
By Harry Bergerbest
314
There, he was condemned to four years of
hard labor as a miner. The work was demanding,
but the pride of the Polish people was strong.
Both Jews and Polish nationalists banded together
in the mines to form a Polish patriotic
organization.
After the Nazis were defeated in 1945, Russia
allowed Polish citizens to return to Poland. Harry
Bergerbest left the mines of Siberia in March
1945. He arrived in Szczecin, Poland, in May
1945. By July, Harry was living in a displaced
persons camp in West Germany. Here he contacted
relatives in the United States who arranged
for his immigration. Harry Bergerbest
arrived in the United States on April 5, 1949.
Harry never forgot his five army buddies.
The Nazis not only took the lives of these valiant
soldiers but destroyed their families in Luboml
as well. These printed words are a lasting tribute
to the memories of these five dear friends and
their families.
To most, they were unsung heroes doing
their duty to win the war; to those who knew
them, they were lasting friends who always will
be remembered.
Editor's note: This article is an addition to the
English translation and did not appear in the
original Yizkor Book of Luboml.