1935
Uncle Julius continues to pay B'Nai Israel dues for Chana who is living with us at 2207 Putnam Street. At this time his daughters Frances and Alice have a radio program in Kansas City, Missouri which probably helped the family income.
Independent First Kudryncer Congregation Kranken (Sick) Aid Society, established in New York, 1900.
This Society was one of many "landsmanshaftn clubs established by the immigrants when they arrived to the United States. The purpose was twofold: 1-establish burial plots and 2-gather as a group for social purposes and collecting monies to send back to the families left behind in the old country. The members of this landsmanshaftn society were from Kudrynce (pronounced Kid-er-unce), the home of my father's relatives Reinsteins, Zukers, and Blitzers.
October of 1994, my sister-in-law, Sally Blitzer (Phil's wife) told me her mother knew of the Kudryncer Society whose 95th reunion was being held at the Raleigh Hotel in the Catskills. I called Thelma Slutsky, treasurer of the group at the time, and she invited Ted and me to attend, which we did.
The members were descendents of the founding fathers of this Society and many were survivors of WW II. A member also in attendance was a survivor from Mielnitza. It was quite a moment for me to be introduced to Jonas Lindenbaum who lived in the town of our parents and their ancestors. For the first time I was able to learn, first hand, what life in Mielnitza was like and something about the town itself.
Of course Poland had drastically changed in 1919 when it was "reborn" and the old antisemetic predjudices, which had been controlled by the Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria, were now free to exist. The economy was in a depression too and of course "the rest is history".
I had copied a few documents from the Warsaw archives to take with me and by some miracle it turned out that Jonas' maternal grandparents were Reinsteins who were listed on the records I brought. From then on we were "kindred spirits". He couldn't believe I had so much information about them including their house numbers. Jonas told me I had a cousin Julius Reiter (1914-1996), born in Mielnitza, who survived the war and was living in Miami, Florida. (see chapter 10, page 10) Read Jonas' testimony of how he outsmarted the nazis and what I learned from Julius about his survival and the family.
Thelma Slutsky sent me a few copies of the Kudryncer landsmanshaftn society's annual affair invitations in the late 1930s. Notice how the "tenor" of the invitations gradually changes from a happy, social event to a frantic call to the membership to respond to cries for help from their families in Europe.
Program Notes of 1935
1935 Kudrynce Society annual event. (Purpose: Social affair and to collect money for mazto to send to families in Poland.
"Dear Sisters and Brothers:
[I]nclosed you will find----------tickets to our ANNUAL AFFAIR, which takes place on Saturday Evening, March 23rd, 1935, at the Hennington Hall, 214-16 East 2nd Street New York City. The purpose of this affair is for a MATZOH FUND for our Sisters and Brothers in Europe. Trusting you will give us your cooperation, as this is for a very worthy cause and at the same time you will enjoy a pleasant evening, as we have arranged a well-known Band of Music for your entertainment.
Additional tickets can be had at our regular meetings, or at the Secretary of the affair, Max Hollenberg, 126-8 Ludlow Street, New York. Payments can also be sent to the above address.
Fraternally yours,
THE ARRANGEMENT COMMITTEE
P.S. You are also urged to be present at our next REGULAR MEETING, which will be held SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16th, 1935, at our meeting rooms, 257 East Houston Street, where ELECTION for NEW OFFICERS of the LOAN FUND for the new year will take place. By order of the President, A Roll Call will be taken and $1.00 fine for not attending will be charged"
(This was also written in Yiddish on the opposite page)
(None of the Executive members are listed)
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