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Devan McCallister Mr. Neuberger ENG Comp 102 104 7 October 2011 Summary of Martha Barons Holocaust Testimony

Martha Baron was born Poland, January 30 1927. She lived with her family in a small one bedroom apartment with her parents and younger brother. She had a normal childhood. Martha and her friends would walk to and from school and to stores by themselves. Martha never experienced direct anti- Semitism before the war. Until the war Martha Baron had a normal life. She went to school with other Jewish kids and together they did normal kid things.

Everything remained normal for Martha until 1939. Martha was in the sixth grade at the age of twelve when the Germans came. There was shooting and bombs going off so the entire family went to the basement and when they came out the Germans had occupied the town. After this schools were shut down. The people hoped that things would go back to normal, but in the few hours it took for the Germans to occupy the town, Marthas life was changed forever.

Soon after the invasion the Jewish citizens including Ms. Baron had to wear arm bands as an identifier. It became very clear that the Germans intuitions were not good. The Germans soon took all of Ms. Barons fathers printing machinery. Eventually the ghetto was erected in 1941 taking over the area where Martha and her family resided. During the time spent in the ghetto she was sent to different jobs daily, usually doing things for the Germans. Everyone had to work to get their ration of food. Ms. Baron said Life was not the same, it was more restricted, more

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limited, and food was plainer Martha celebrated her fifteenth birthday during this period of time. That was the last birthday she ever had with her family.

One day early in the morning Martha in 1943 or 44 her parents awakened her because a bunch of S.S. soldiers were lined up across the street. The soldiers came and brought everyone out their houses and lined them up in the street. She remembered marching and then the Germans began the selection. Marthas mother got separated from the rest of the family. When her father chased after her a soldier hit him with a gun and sent him back. Ms. Baron never saw her mother again.

After that they were put in a small ghetto and continued to work. Ms. Baron suffered a memory block from this part of her life. She remembers the day her father and brother did not return from work. Later on someone told her that they were shot in the back while working. Eventually she was taken to a labor camp were she stayed until Liberation. The time Martha spent in the camp was passive and numb. She said, inside of me was numb, and put away. She lost the will to live not caring if she lived or died. She never expected to survive. I think I didnt think of my parents because I expected to join them soon.