Franka Kenet born in 1921 in Częstochowa
Społeczność żydowska przed 1989 – Relacje, wspomnienia
Polska / śląskie
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An English resume of an interview that took place in Israel, as a part of the Polish Roots in Israel project. Interviewee name: Franka Kenet
Franka was born on 26.10.1921 in the city of Częstochowa. It was an industrial city with many factories and with a population of 120 thousand, 40,000 of which were Jews. The Jewish neighborhoods were divided. There was a large neighborhood that was comprised mostly of poor Jews – craftsmen, owners, of small stores, etc. Most of the Jews lived in dire economic situations, many of them being laborers in the many factories. The laborers felt they were exploited and revolted against the regime, demanding betterment. Community life was rich and lively with many social and cultural, as well as ideological activities. The youth was very active in the various youth movements that included: Gordonya, Bey"tar, Hashomer Hatsayir", which awakened their awareness and curiosity. There were, of course, also rich Jews that owned their own factories. In general, Franka remembers the city as being anti-Semitic.
Franka's childhood was a difficult one. Their economic situation was bad. Her father, Efrayim Fishel Kozłowski was a shopkeeper who sold cardboard and paper products. Franka remembers him as nimble and intelligent.
Her mother, Zila, maiden name Rapaport, was a sickly woman. All Franka's memories of her are as being sick. Their lives were very stressful. Franka had an older brother – Joseph. He was active in the Be"ytar movement and emigrated to Palestine in 1939, several months before the break out of World War II.
When she was age 8 her mother died. A year later her father remarried.
Franka studied at a Jewish school where she also learned the Polish language. She was an excellent student. At school she learned how to speak, read and write Hebrew, which made her absorption in the country many years later, very easy. At the age 12 she began to tutor students, which allowed her to make a little money that helped their economic situation and gave her great satisfaction.
When she was 16 her father could no longer afford to send her to school. She therefore left school and went to work. She worked in the office of a factory that was owned by a Jew, doing secretarial work and running errands.
The War started from the city of Częstochowa in 1939. The city was on the German border. On Friday at noon, the Germans crossed the border and invaded the city, and from that moment life changed completely and irrevocably.
Contact with the world disappeared, people – mainly Jews - were kidnapped in the streets and taken to work for the Germans. Fear reigned in the city and people were afraid to leave their homes.
Franka lived in a neighborhood that was situated in between the Jewish and Polish neighborhoods.
In 1940 the Germans formed a big ghetto in the city – and they changed residence. The entire Jewish community was forced to huddle into a small number of streets and the family moved into a tiny apartment.
Franka passed her time taking a first aid course. In 1941 a small ghetto was declared which was allotted 3 big streets into which everyone had to fit.
There was a street for women, a street for men and a street for married couples. On 20.9.42, "Yom Kippur", liquidation of the ghetto commenced. Each time a different street was chosen and everyone was removed from the houses and selection began – left for labor (life) and right for the trains (death). From that time on events were a matter of luck and fate.
Franka was saved by her resourcefulness at the right moment and her alertness.
One Saturday Franka saw a large group of people walking towards the city (the factories). Franka realized that they were chosen for life. She immediately had the idea of joining the group, and taking her purse, she said goodbye to her family and ran to the group.
Inside the group to her luck she found three of her cousins and so she was not alone. They worked and lived while the selections continued. After a while, they returned to the small ghetto and to whoever remained. They worked in the Hasag ammunitions factory. Early every morning, they would walk the street to the factory. Franka worked on machine that made weapon parts. They lived like that until 1943.
Conditions in the ghetto were very hard. There was very little food and there were many diseases.
One day something happened.
Some of the ghetto inhabitants were in the factory and inside the ghetto were the number of people that remained. It was 4.1.43. In the morning Germans surrounded the ghetto and all the ghetto inhabitants were taken out of their homes and lined up. Two young men decided to revolt. One assailed a German who had weapon. He was caught outright and killed but it was an attempt to rebel!
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