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My father, Moshe Slobodianskiy, was born in the village of Poyana, Rezinsk disrict, Moldova [2], in 1900. At that time it was the territory of Russia and in 1918 it became a part of Romania.
I didn’t know my grandparents on my father’s side. They died during an epidemic when they were young. All I know about them is that they were born in Poyana. My grandfather’s name was Berl Slobodianskiy and I was named after him.
My father told me that his family was poor and that my grandparents had many children. My father was the youngest. After their parents died their older children moved to Palestine and the USA. They didn’t write letters and there was no information about them since then.
My father and his two older brothers, Ide-Leib and Yankel, were raised by some distant relatives. My father and his brothers studied at cheder, but after finishing it they had to go to work. I remember them well – they lived in our village.
My father’s brothers built houses in Poyana and got married. One of my father’s brothers, Ide-Leib, worked as a shoemaker, but later he became a tailor. He could do many things; he was very handy. He could also cut glass. My father’s brother Yankel was growing tobacco and my father was helping him. It was his business.
My father’s brothers were religious. There was no synagogue in Poyana and Ide-Leib had Jews coming to his house for a prayer every day. Ide-Leib was a cantor during such prayers.
Ide-Leib perished at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War [3], and Yankel and his family moved to Israel in the 1970s. He died recently; his children still live in Israel.
I didn’t know my grandparents on my father’s side. They died during an epidemic when they were young. All I know about them is that they were born in Poyana. My grandfather’s name was Berl Slobodianskiy and I was named after him.
My father told me that his family was poor and that my grandparents had many children. My father was the youngest. After their parents died their older children moved to Palestine and the USA. They didn’t write letters and there was no information about them since then.
My father and his two older brothers, Ide-Leib and Yankel, were raised by some distant relatives. My father and his brothers studied at cheder, but after finishing it they had to go to work. I remember them well – they lived in our village.
My father’s brothers built houses in Poyana and got married. One of my father’s brothers, Ide-Leib, worked as a shoemaker, but later he became a tailor. He could do many things; he was very handy. He could also cut glass. My father’s brother Yankel was growing tobacco and my father was helping him. It was his business.
My father’s brothers were religious. There was no synagogue in Poyana and Ide-Leib had Jews coming to his house for a prayer every day. Ide-Leib was a cantor during such prayers.
Ide-Leib perished at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War [3], and Yankel and his family moved to Israel in the 1970s. He died recently; his children still live in Israel.
Location
Ukraine
Interview
Boris Slobodianskiy
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