ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Writing this book was no easy task. Reconstructing the difficult times I experienced made it even harder. With the work completed, I wish to thank all those who lent their assistance in overcoming this challenge:

First and foremost, my sister Zipporah, whose unflagging support helped me survive childhood, and who sustained me as I embarked on a new life in the United States. Zipporah refreshed my memory and added many important details throughout the writing of the book. I thank her from the bottom of my heart for all her sage advice.

I am indebted to my friend Gershon Stav, who researched and wrote this book from a place of profound identification with its contents. With dedication and endless patience, he heard my tale, made my words come alive with credibility and professionalism, and checked sources and testimonies which completed the puzzle. For this I am deeply grateful to him.

My compliments to Mrs. Yehudit Schwartz, language and text editor of the Hebrew book, whose professional wisdom, sensitivity, thoughtful comments and discerning eye contributed to the content and special nature of the book.

Special thanks to Mrs. Marta Goren, author and Holocaust researcher, who devoted time and provided much assistance in the initial stages of writing the book. We thank her for sharing her extensive knowledge, the fruit of her many years of researching the Holocaust.

I appreciate the help of Mr. Oded Yedaya, headmaster of the “Minshar for Art” college, in obtaining critical information for the chapter “Hanitah.” I am very grateful to the Hanitah Wall and Tower Museum and its director, Mr. Yoel Gozlan, for welcoming us to the museum and permitting us the use of its archives.

Special thanks to the translator, Nachama Kanner, whose professional talent helped convey the content and spirit of the Hebrew text in its English version. I also thank the English editor, Yael Unterman, whose cooperation and skillful editing helped complete this work.

My sincerest thanks and appreciation to my family: my children Ron, Jay, and Michelle, and my grandchildren Morielle, Tomer, Adam and Sara, and to my late wife’s family, the Siri family, in Israel and around the world.

In conclusion, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to Orly Gal, my life partner, who contributed to the efforts involved in preparing this book, for her insightful wisdom and, not least, for her years of patience and support.

May they all be blessed.

Sam Domb

Kislev 5773

Monument in Bat-Yam Israel cemetery in memory of the Pultusk martyrs killed in the Holocaust

 In memory of the pure soul of my mother, Rivka Domb, and the souls of all my family members who lost their lives in the Holocaust, together with our six million Jewish brethren, may God avenge their blood. To the pure memory of my father, Avraham Domb and his wife Leah, and the memory of my sisters Ita and Sara of blessed memory.