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All Jews in our village strictly followed all Jewish rules. Jewish families lived in the center of the village.
There was a Jewish community in Poyana. There were metal boxes [4] with a Jewish star on them in Jewish houses. People threw coins in a slot in these boxes. This was money saving for poor Jews and for Jews in Palestine. Savings were collected by the chairman of the community and his deputy.
There was no cheder in our village. When I turned six my father began to teach me Hebrew, but I wasn’t doing well. Probably it was because my father worked a lot and got very tired or I was a poor student, but our classes were no success. Later my mother hired a teacher of Hebrew for me and my sisters to teach us at home. He lived in Ochedar. After the war this teacher was a cantor at the synagogue in Chernovtsy.
There was a Jewish community in Poyana. There were metal boxes [4] with a Jewish star on them in Jewish houses. People threw coins in a slot in these boxes. This was money saving for poor Jews and for Jews in Palestine. Savings were collected by the chairman of the community and his deputy.
There was no cheder in our village. When I turned six my father began to teach me Hebrew, but I wasn’t doing well. Probably it was because my father worked a lot and got very tired or I was a poor student, but our classes were no success. Later my mother hired a teacher of Hebrew for me and my sisters to teach us at home. He lived in Ochedar. After the war this teacher was a cantor at the synagogue in Chernovtsy.
Location
Ukraine
Interview
Boris Slobodianskiy