The City of Częstochowa Honours Sigmund Rolat z"l
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Source: Geoffrey Rolat
“I feel that I’m at home!”, said Geoffrey Rolat, following the unveiling of a plaque in the Częstochowa Town Hall, honouring his late father, Sigmund Rolat z”l, a Holocaust survivor, prominent businessman, philanthropist and supporter of culture and education,
The unveiling, in the presence of the Mayor of Częstochowa, Krzysztof Matyjaszczyk, was also attended by Sigmund’s daughter Samantha Asulin and his grandson Henry Asulin.
The ceremony, witnessed by a large audience of the city’s citizens and American guests, featured remarks by the Mayor and by Geoffrey Rolat. This was followed by a rendition of Sigmund’s favorite song, “Jerusalem of Gold,” performed by renowned cellist Adam Klocek.
The Town Hall ceremony was followed by a festive concert at the Bronisław Huberman Częstochowa Philharmonic.
The concert, produced and conducted by Adam Klocek, featured a violin concerto by Mieczysław Weinberg, a Polish-Jewish composer, followed by Antonin Dvořák‘s Symphony No. 9 in E-minor, “From the New World.”
In his remarks before the concert, Geoffrey Rolat pointed out that the concert hall is located on the site of Częstochowa’s New Synagogue, which was destroyed by the Nazis. He said that his father had loved his family, loved Częstochowa, and that he loved great music.
Sigmund Rolat z”l was born in Częstochowa in 1930. After his parents had perished during the Holocaust, at the age of fifteen, he emigrated, eventually settling in the United States.
However, from 1967, he returned to his native city many times.. During that entire period, until his passing, he supported the city’s cultural and educational institutions, especially the city’s Jewish cultural and historical heritage. The creation of the Częstochowa Jewish Museum will always remain as a tribute to his dedication to the preservation of the history of the city’s thriving pre-war Jewish community.
Farewell Prof. Andrzej Desperak (1958-2024)
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It is with immense sadness that we learned of the passing of PROFESSOR ANDRZEJ DESPERAK, painter, graphic artist, pedagogue and long-serving professor at the Jan Długosz University of Częstochowa.
He worked together with Professor Dr. hab. Jerzy Mizgalski during the creation of our “THE JEWS OF CZĘSTOCHOWA” exhibition, which now has a permanent home in the Częstochowa Jewish Museum at ul Katedralna 18, in Częstochowa.
Professor Mizgalski writes the following in memory of his friend and colleague:
Andrzej and I still had much to discuss. We understood each other so well. We inspired and supported each other in implementing our ideas. The permanent exhibition “The Jews of Częstochowa” is a work of soul and a message about the past as a warning for the future. Sigmund Rolat z”l fully accepted this message.
We pursued this goal in such a way as to appeal to contemporary viewers – not only via the artifacts, but also through the composition of the exhibition space. We did this so that post-WW2 generations would understand the warnings of racist genocide, fierce hatred between nations, irreparable material losses and broken links in multi-generational family lines.
For us, working on the exhibition was not only a challenge and the implementation of an ordered project, but it was also an in-depth study of history and many other fields, using techniques and means of artistic expression.
Andrzej, I received the news of your passing with disbelief. We did not have time to finish our many discussions. It saddens me that I am currently unable to personally be present as you leave your hard-working, creative and beautiful earthly journey.
Farewell Andrzej.
Jerzy.
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Israel Searching for Heirs to Częstochowa Holocaust Victims' Property
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Source: Alon Goldman
Before World War II, one of the ways that Diaspora Jews could support the Zionist vision and Israel was by purchasing shares in Jewish Colonial Trust Limited (JCT), the parent company of the Anglo-Palestine Bank (the predecessor of Bank Leumi), which was founded by Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl in 1899, with the aim of serving as a financial instrument of the Zionist movement.
The website of the General Custodian of Israel contains a list of abandoned shareholdings belonging to Holocaust victims, including those from Częstochowa.
At the request of World Society Vice-President Alon Goldman, the General Custodian has compiled a listing of all the names of property owners (securities and deposits) linked to Częstochowa (spelt in different forms).
Click HERE to view the listing.
Anyone, who believes that he/she may be the rightful heir of any of these registered property owners, should contact the General Custodian according to the following instructions:
Instructions in Hebrew: https://www.gov.il/he/service/returning_abandoned_asset
Instructions in English: https://www.gov.il/BlobFolder/unit/lrup/en/application-form.pdf
If, following this publication, you were able to receive any unexpected inheritance, we would greatly appreciate you donating some amount to our continuing maintenance and restoration of our Częstochowa Jewish cemetery:
Częstochowa Commemorates Ghetto Liquidation
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Source: Text – Alon Goldman, Photographs – Łukasz Kolewiński
A ceremony took place at the Częstochowa Jewish Cemetery, on Friday 20th September, marking the 82nd anniversary of the liquidation of the Częstochowa ghetto, resulting in the deportation, of about 40,000 of the ghetto’s Jews, in six transports, to their deaths in the German death camp in Treblinka.
The event was moderated by Izabela Sobańska-Klekowska, Chair of the Częstochowa branch of the TSKŻ. Participants included Częstochowa Deputy Mayor Dr. Ryszard Stefaniak, Częstochowa City Councillors, members of the local military and security forces, members of the local Jewish community and friends. Students of Słowacki High School also presented a performance of several songs.
World Society Vice-President, Alon Goldman (below left), noted that we are slowly saying goodbye to the Survivor First Generation and, soon, there will be no one to tell, firsthand, what happened. He said that the obligation to preserve the memory is now passed to the Holocaust Second and Third Generations, and we must not allow anyone to forget the tragedy and what our families went through.
Częstochowa Deputy Mayor, Dr. Ryszard Stefaniak (above right), also emphasised the importance and duty of remembrance of the Holocaust victims, Jewish citizens of the city.
He said, “Częstochowa remembers, because Jewish citizens constituted a very important part of the citizens of our city. They were a people of culture, science, philanthropists, whose economic activists left permanent traces here. Fairness obliges us to remember those who died, in a sense, for their homeland. The ceremonies, commemorating the liquidation of the Częstochowa ghetto, are living lessons in the city’s identity and an important element in building historical consciousness. Thanks to them, the younger generations can learn about the tragic events that happened in the city – so delegations of Czestochowa schools participate in these ceremonies. The commemoration anniversary of the liquidation of the ghetto is not only an act of remembrance, but also a commitment to ensure that similar tragedies do not happen again.”
“Kaddish” was then recited by Alon Goldman.
Farewell Piotr Stasiak z"l (1947-2024)
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Photographs: Asia Sidorowicz
It is with immense sadness, and a degree of shock, that we learned of the sudden passing of PIOTR STASIAK z”l, a significant member of our World Society.
Piotr passed away on Saturday 14th September 2024.
Piotr was Sigmund Rolat’s cousin and, for many years, his “right-hand man” in Poland. Anyone, who attended any of the World Society’s five reunions, will have met and got to know him.
Piotr was also active in Beit Polska and Beit Warszawa – the Reform Judaism synagogue and organisation in Poland. Piotr was a Past President of this movement.
He was a kind, caring man and friend – he will be sadly missed by many in Poland and around the world.
Baruch Dayan ha’Emet.
In the presence of many friends and members of the community,
Piotr’s funeral took place at the Warsaw Jewish Cemetery, ul Okopowa,
on Friday 20th September 2024 at 11:00am.
New Website About HASAG Pelcery
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Local Częstochowa historians and filmmakers, Marcin Bocain and Kamil Langier, have launched a new website dedicated to the history of the HASAG Pelcery, the Nazi forced labour in Częstochowa, where are parents, grandparents and other ancestors worked as slaves in this Hugo Schneider AG munitions factory.
The website, in both in Polish and English, not only contains general information about the camp, but also the prisoners and their lives there, an interactive map of the camp buildings and pictures of objects which Marcin and Kamil have found on the former site of the camp and which have been donated by others.
The website work is a “work in progress”. In the future, additional pages will be added to the site, including a “Search Engine for forced workers” feature.
Both Marcin and Kamil have created this site out of their love of history. They believe that the history of HASAG Pelcery needs to be preserved as a vital component in telling the story of the fate of Częstochowa’s Jewish citizens in World War II.
To view this amazing website, click HERE.
2024 Częstochowa Jewish Cemetery Clean-Up is Done
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Sources: Alon Goldman, Jolanta Urbańska, Asia Sidorowicz
On an almost annual basis, Alon Goldman, Vice-President of the World Society of Częstochowa Jews & Their Descendants and Chairman of the Association of Częstochowa Jews is Israel, has organised and led a clean-up of the Częstochowa Jewish cemetery. Over time, Alon has been joined by volunteers from various organisations, both adults and young people in this holy work.
DAY 1: Thursday, 16th May 2024
The work of cleaning up the Częstochowa Jewish Cemetery has begun. Today, our volunteers were students from the General Władysław Anders High School Complex and members of the ADULLAM Foundation.
Preparation for the week of cleaning work was carried out by Nissenbaum Family Foundation staff who, for several days, came to cut down fallen trees and bushes – and, for that, we thank them sincerely!
The high school students were divided into groups, who carried the cut logs and branches to the path and stacked them into piles. Tomorrow, the shredder will begin its work on the branches. The results are already! In the afternoon, a group of volunteers from the ADULLAM Foundation arrived, together with a local partnership “Ancient City-New Life”, who came to work with us at the cemetery. Particularly exciting is that they were accompanied by a special needs group from PSONI Częstochowa, who also joined in our work.
Of course, the day could not pass without mentioning that we remember our friend Alex Dancyg and the other kidnap victims
– we pray for their speedy, safe return.
DAY 2: Friday, 17th May 2024
For our second day’s work, we were joined by volunteers from the ADULLAM Foundation, led by Robert Kamela, and by 25 students from the Kazimierz Pułaski Mechanical-Electrical High School Complex. We were also joined by World Society friend and stalwart in preserving Częstochowa’s Jewish heritage, Krzysztof Straus, who did amazing work with his mechanical trimmer. Thank you all!
Today’s work focused on moving the logs of the felled trees and bushes, from amongst the graves, to the path in order to enable their removal/shredding. New piles also began to be stacked up in other places along the path. Also, today, the branch-shredding machine began its work. Hiring this piece of machinery provides us with a quick, efficient and cheaper method of removal of vegetation waste from the cemetery.
We would also like to thank the City of Częstochowa for responding to Alon’s request and providing, at no cost, chemicals, which were used by the students, a huge disposal container for the vegetation waste and for increasing Straż Miejska (Municipal Guard) security around the cemetery, during our work.
During today’s work, we came to the remains of the ohel of the Częstochowa Rebbe, Rabbi Awigdor Shapira (pic left).
He died in Częstochowa on 10th March 1928.
In 1971, his remains were moved to the Washington Floral Park Cemetery, New Jersey, by his daughter, the late Satmar Rebbetzin, Ałta Fajga Teitelbaum.
For more information, click HERE.
DAY 3: Monday, 20th May 2024
Today, the work continued at full pace, with the help of about fifty students from the Jan Kochanowski High School Complex and more volunteers from the ADULLAM Foundation. We were also joined by Moshe Hoffman and Alon, his grandson, who are visiting from Israel.
Thanks to the preparatory tree-felling work carried out by the Nissenbaum Family Foundation workers, again, today’s work centred around removing the logs of the felled trees and bushes from the graves. These were stacked along the cemetery path in order for them to be either removed or shredded.
Again the branch-shredding machine was doing its work so that, as previous piles of logs, branches and bushes were shredded, they were replaced with new stacks from today’s work..
DAY 4: Tuesday, 21st May 2024
The work continued. Today, the volunteers of the ADULLAM Foundation (Fundacja Chrizescijańska Adullam) were joined by students from the John Paul II Technical Vocations High School in Częstochowa.
The branch- shredding machine moved to a new location further along the path and continued operation until all the branches from yesterday, near the gate, had been crushed. In the meantime, our student and ADULLAM volunteers continued to stack new piles near the cemetery gate. These piles have become longer and are now posing a challenge to remove from the cemetery.
Tomorrow is our last working day and the results of the hard work can already definitely be seen!
DAY 5: Wednesday, 22nd May 2024
This was the last day of our 2024 Częstochowa Jewish Cemetery clean-up.
Today, the volunteer team from the Adullam Foundation were joined by students from the General Władysław Sikorski Technical High School.
Our work concentrated on the terrain alongside the cemetery all. The Nissenbaum Family Foundation working group and professional arborists,, whom we hired, had prepared the area in advance and the students were busy moving the logs and branches out to the path to be shredded and removed.
Szymon, the shredding machine operator, and his helpers worked throughout the day to finish all the branch shredding, leaving only stacks of shredded vegetation to be removed.
All week, we have enjoyed excellent weather but, today, we had to unfortunately finish work at noon. Already in the morning, we received a warning of thunderstorms and rain and, towards the afternoon, the sky was covered in dark clouds and the rain began falling. There was no point in staying, so we packed up the work tools, thanked the students and finished the work day.
Due to the precision preparatory work carried out, our work has been most effective. The results can be seen by anyone who walks from the entrance gate to the central monument area. There are almost no lying trees, which interfere with the pathways between the rows or which cover graves. The bushes are mostly gone and, in many places, from the pathway, the fences on both sides of the cemetery can be seen.
This concentrated work period is now over, but there is still much ahead to be ahead. We hope that local people will continue to organise volunteer days until our next concentrated work week.
As this was the final day of our 2024 clean-up, it’s appropriate to thank many people:
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- our World Society Vice-President, Alon Goldman
- Elżbieta Ferenc, Director of the Adullam Foundation, for mobilising and organising its volunteer group, for caring, storing and maintaining our work tools from year to year and for supporting all the logistical aspects of the work.
- the team of volunteers from the Adullam Foundation – hardworking people with huge hearts
- Robert Kamela, who led the team of volunteers of the Adullam Foundation, who worked incessantly throughout each day..
- Rafał Piotrowski, head of the Częstochowa Municipal Education Department, for his cooperation and for recruiting the schools and their students for our project.
- Iwona Brzezowska, Director of the General Władysław Anders High School Complex, for the relationship which she has created with other school principals and their work arrangement for the whole week.
- Krzysztof Straus for his preparedness for the work, his support and his assistance in everything that we require.
- Częstochowa Deputy Mayor. Łukasz Kot for his assistance in setting up the chemical toilets for all our volunteer workers, tthe container for the removal of the vegetation waste and for his willingness to take care of the removal of all the logs and piles of rubble that were left in the cemetery.
- Izabela Sobańska-Klekowska, Chairperson of the Częstochowa branch of the TSKŻ, for organising the volunteers for the Thursday afternoon.
- Jolanta Urbańska and the team of volunteers from Stowarzyszenie Demokratyczna RP
- Wojciech Łygaś and the Nissenbaum Family Foundation for providing us with the group of professional workers, and.
- The City of Częstochowa and Częstochowa Mayor Krzysztof Matyjaszczyk who, although they do not acknowledge their ownership of the cemetery, support our work with everything we need.
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Thank you everyone and we hope to see you all again next year – or maybe sooner!
This is how local Częstochowa television, ORION TV, covered this year’s Częstochowa Jewish Cemetery clean-up:
Together, with your support, we can do much more!
!יחד עם התמיכה שלכם נוכל לעשות הרבה יותר
The Association of Częstochowa Jews in Israel supports these works by financing the purchase of tools and gloves,
as well as protection against ticks and mosquitoes.
We also hire skilled aborists and mulching machines as needed.
Together, with your support and contribution, we can do more! A donation to support our activities can be made as detailed below:
Meeting on Future of Częstochowa Jewish Cemetery
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Source: Alon Goldman
Those present included Częstochowa Mayor Krzysztof Matyjaszczyk, Provincial Conservator of Heritage Sites Łukasz Konarzewski, Chairman of the Jewish Gmina in Katowice Włodzimierz Kac, Vice-President of the World Society of Częstochowa Jews & Their Descendants Alon Goldman, as well as representatives of the National Institute for the Conservation of Heritage Sites.
Discussions took place on the future of this important site, which is sacred to all of us.
All participants agreed to hold regular future meetings and it appears that, at last, this is a first step towards resolving the issue of the ownership of the cemetery. This is essential to the funding and carrying out of future and major restoration works, which are and will be urgently required on this sacred site.
Sigmund Rolat z"l (1930-2024)
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It is with great sorrow that we advise of the passing of Sigmund Rolat z”l, President and founder of our World Society of Częstochowa Jews & Their Descendants. Born Zygmunt Rozenblat on 1st July 1930 in Częstochowa, he passed away in New York on 18th May 2024, at the age of 93, surrounded by his family.
Losing both his parents and his brother during the Holocaust, he survived the Częstochowa ghettos and the HASAG-Pelcery forced labour camp in Częstochowa, After liberation, he went to France and then to Germany, where he graduated from high school. In February 1948, Sigmund arrived in the USA and ultimately graduated from both the University of Cincinnati and New York University. He then went on to become a successful businessman.
Over many years, Sigmund was the driving force for the preservation of Poland’s Jewish heritage – in particular in our home city of Częstochowa. Without his efforts, our World Society of Częstochowa Jews & Their Descendants and its five Reunions in Częstochowa would never have happened. He was the major force behind the creation of the Częstochowa Jewish Museum and the preservation of Jewish heritage sites in the city.
He was also a major funder of the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews and served on its Board since its inception.
Over the years, in recognition of his tireless efforts, Sigmund has been honoured by the Polish Government, the City of Częstochowa , the Jan Długosz University of Częstochowa, the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem – to name just a few.
To his children, Geoffrey, Samantha and Amanda, to his grandchildren and to his extended family, in accordance with Jewish tradition,
we wish them long life and that they should know no more sorrow.
May his soul be bound within the bonds of eternal life.
Baruch Dayan Emet.
To view the funeral service of Sigmund Rolat z”l, which took place on 20th May 2024, click HERE.
More about the life of Sigmund Rolat z”l:
- “Generations of the Shoah – the Sigmund A Rolat Story”
- An Interview with Sigmund Rolat – Orion TV
- Witness: Sigmund Rolat – Jewish Broadcasting Service
- Receiving Honorary Citizenship of the City of Częstochowa – Orion TV
- Receiving Honorary Professorship of the Jan Długosz University of Częstochowa – Orion TV
Częstochowa TSKŻ Commemorates 81st Anniversary of Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
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Source: text – Alon Goldman, photographs – Jolanta Urbańska & Małgorzata Kaim
The Częstochowa branch of the TSKŻ commemorated the 81st anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
by organising a ceremony at the Częstochowa Jewish Memorial.
Members of the Częstochowa TSKŻ were joined, in the ceremony, by representatives of local government,
students from the Juliusz Słowacki High School and members of the local Częstochowa community.