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THE ACTIVITIES OF THE BENEVOLENT SOCIETY
OF LUBOML AND THE SURROUNDING AREAS
By Shmuel Fuks
The Second World War severed all existing ties
between the citizens of Eretz Yisroel [then Palestine]
and their relatives in Luboml. During the
Russian rule in Luboml there was still some
news from time to time. However, when the
Nazis took over, what was once worry turned
into fear for the lives of our dear ones.
Newspapers did not bring any hope into our
lives; rather, what we knew of the Nazis' cruelty
toward our brothers brought trepidation into our
hearts. We waited anxiously for someone to come
from the town who perhaps would bear the message
that it was not all true and as real as the
newspapers made it seem.
The first to come from across the sea was
Eliezer Wolk, who arrived as a soldier with the
Anders Army, a Polish unit organized in Russia
to fight the Nazis.
This man went to the central synagogue in
Tel Aviv upon his arrival and asked the worshippers
there if they knew Shmuel Fuks. As it
turned out, he found someone there who knew
me and who brought the man to my home on
Wolfson Street.
We were happy that he had come and we
related to him as if he was a member of the family.
To our despair, however, he did not know
much about what was going on in Luboml because
when he escaped from the town on his
way to Russia everyone still was alive.
On the list of "Teheran Children" who
reached Palestine, I found a youth from Luboml
around 15 years old whose name was Isaiah
Goldenson. I invited him to my home as well.
Nevertheless, even he could not tell me much
about the fate of our relatives in Luboml. This boy
359
was with us for nearly two years. He then left
for America, where his uncle lived.
The third youth to arrive, in February of
1946, was Nathan Sobel, who came with the first
Youth Aliyah group of 43 orphaned children
from Europe, arriving from Berlin via France.
From him we learned about the total destruction
of Luboml Jewry that occurred during World War
II. He was the first to tell in detail what had occurred.
The fourth individual from Luboml to arrive
in Israel was Avrom Getman. From him we
learned more about the extermination of our
families and about the atrocities of the Nazis.
He also lived with us in our home until his
brother Yakov Hetman was released from a detention
camp in Kenya where he was sent by the
British for participating in terrorist attacks staged
by Etzel [the &gun] and Lechi [the Stern Gang].
In the meantime, letters began to arrive from
other survivors. We found out which of them had
been in camps and who had been in the forests.
We began to feel that we must organize so that
we could lend a helping hand to our broViers in
need. Some of our landsleit [fellow townspeople]
gathered. Among them were Yechezkiel
Kornfeld, Shloyme Veytsfrucht, Tsvi Fuks,
Dvoyre Gitklig, and Basye Zilberger-Cohen. This
group organized a committee to help our brothers
in Europe and elsewhere.
Our plan was to collect money to pay for packages
to be sent to the survivors, as well as to provide
for new immigrants, giving them some encouragement.
We managed to collect a small
amount of money and sent some packages abroad.
We also helped those few who managed to reach