Eyewitness Testimony Jan Stec

• Steć, Jan, Questionnaire provided by the Fundacja "Polsko-Niemieckie Pojednanie" [Foundation "Polish-German Reconciliation"]. Response from Jan Steć, Słupsk 21.III. 2007 Dear Mr. Marc Bartuschka, Today, March 6, 2007, I visited my sister Teresa Wyka, residing in Zielinia Mastecki, and learned from her that she had received from the Foundation "Polish-German Reconciliation" a questionnaire prepared by you with a request to complete it. After familiarizing myself with the content of the letter, I decided to take the questionnaire received from my sister and answer the questions contained therein. I am very pleased that your doctoral thesis will focus on the armament factories of the Nazi industrial group "Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring" REIMAHG and also on the fates of the forced laborers who were compelled to work in this factory during World War II. I must note that my sister cannot fill out this questionnaire due to her age and health condition (she is 77 years old). In my opinion, it does not matter who fills out the questionnaire. Ultimately, it is about providing you with the most information possible for your doctoral thesis. Therefore, my sister asks for your understanding. My name is Jan Steć. I live in Słupsk, and on April 8 I will turn 74 years old. Thus, I decided, to the best of my abilities and based on my own experiences of that period as well as on what my parents and siblings have discussed, to provide the most credible answers to your questions. Along with the completed questionnaire, I am sending you photos and documents that have been preserved as mementos. If I can help you with this, I would be very pleased. I wish that your work may receive high recognition. Together with you, I would be happy about the success achieved and would be extremely grateful if you could inform me about the defense of your doctoral degree. With these few introductory words, I would like to conclude and wish you all the best from the bottom of my heart. Respectfully, mgr. Jan Steć Page 1/27 I. Before Departure 1. When were you born and who belonged to your family? My family consisted of six persons: - Father Władysław Steć, born November 1, 1900, in Uśiług - Mother, born March 19, 1899, in Stary Zamość - Brother Stanisław Steć, born May 8, 1928, in Włodzimierz Wołyński - Sister Teresa Steć, currently Wyka, born January 17, 1930, in Włodzimierz Wołyński - I, Jan Steć, born April 8, 1933, in Włodzimierz Wołyński - Sister Maria Steć, currently Oryszko, born October 22, 1941, in Włodzimierz Wołyński Father died on July 6, 1979 Mother died on September 1, 1989 Brother died on August 9, 2002 Note: Some data in documents issued by German authorities contain minor inaccuracies. Signature under the photo: My family in 1937. From left: Sister Teresa, Mother, Brother Stanisław, Father Władysław, and I on Father's knees Page 2/27 Photo of the family from 1942 – from left: (probably back) Brother Stanisław, Sister Teresa, (probably front) Mother with the sister on her knees and I in white clothing. Pages 3/27 – 4/27 II. The Departure 2. When and under what circumstances was the family forced into labor? The cruel days of World War II began for me and my family on September 1, 1939. We lived in Włodzimierz Wołyński. Father worked in a mill as a simple laborer. Mother was engaged in raising the four children and housework. Life was like that of the majority of the inhabitants of this city, which for me will always be wonderful. The outbreak of the war plunged us into poverty, but this fate befell everyone. From 1939 we lived under Soviet occupation until 1941. During the two years of Soviet occupation, life was lived in constant fear of deportation to Siberia. Our neighbors were banished there. In 1941, as a result of the Hitler-German attack on the USSR, there was a change, a new occupying power followed. The Germans came, and the fate of everyone remained unchanged. Life was lived in constant fear of being deported to Germany for forced labor, if not the entire family, then at least individual family members. As a child, I experienced the Second World War and the associated suffering, hardships, hunger, persecution, and the enormous material as well asmoral losses. In 1941, I was seven years old. It was time to attend school. However, there was no school. Consequently, I was to remain illiterate. My brother completed only six grades of elementary school, and Sister Teresa only three grades. In 1944, the Germans retreated westward. The Russians were very close to our town of Włodzimierz. Our existence was threatened. We experienced day-to-day uncertainty and a threat to our survival. On July 14, 1944, the German authorities announced that an evacuation of the residents was taking place and threatened the death penalty if anyone intended to evade this order. Freight cars were placed on the railway tracks on Kowelska Street. The residents from the entire town were driven into these freight cars. The station was no longer in operation at that time because the Germans had destroyed everything behind them as they retreated westward. At that time, there were already very few people left in Włodzimierz, as a significant portion had already fled ahead of the approaching front. Given this situation, we were forced to leave our family home. Therefore, mother prepared provisions for the journey. She packed some absolutely necessary dishes, bedding, and clothing for each family member—simply the most essential things for life. As a child, I remember this was a terrifying sight for all of us. Because the items packed multiple times before had to be unpacked many times again, as it was foreseeable that we would not be able to carry this luggage to the transport point. The pieces of luggage were too heavy, and our family’s strength was insufficient. I was 11 years old then, my brother was 16, my sister 14, and the youngest barely 3 years old. Finally, our luggage was packed according to each person’s available capacity. Some of the things were stored by the parents in the cellar, other things were buried in the garden to save the goods acquired over a lifetime. Each of us took the packed luggage on our backs, and so we went to the designated transport point. People were pushed into freight cars in groups of about 40. In the evening, the wagons were locked in Lublin, where some families were allowed to leave the transport with the permission of the convoy guards. As I learned after the war, these families could do so after handing over a certain quota? (Money? People?) After completing this mentioned formality, the train continued its journey. Now the trip was somewhat more bearable because the wagons were no longer locked, and during longer stops at stations, people could get water and prepare a warm meal on makeshift stoves from the supplies they had brought. On the route from Włodzimierz to Poznań, we received no food. I remember that during the stops in Warsaw and Bydgoszcz, residents of these cities occasionally brought milk for the children. The journey to Poznań took two weeks. After hour-long stops at some stations, the train with the wagons headed towards Uściługa. At that moment, no one thought it possible that this journey would be a one-way trip for all of us. We left our native regions, the family home, the garden, orchard, the dead and living inventory, and everything that had been laboriously created over the years forever. We were free, but we became forced laborers. Map of part of the journey from Volhynia (inserted sheet) P. 4/27 – 5/27 3. How did the transport to Kahla proceed? What conditions prevailed during the transport? The journey from Włodzimierz to Kahla took place in stages. First stage – from Włodzimierz Wołyński to Poznań Second stage – from Poznań to Erfurt Third stage – from Erfurt to Kahla The conditions during the journey were terrible. In the wagons in which we were transported were entire families—men, women, youths, very small children, and elderly people. It was very cramped in the wagons, and there was a stench of unwashed bodies and filth. There was no possibility to lie down. We slept sitting on our own luggage. Physiological needs were done in paper, also in cloth rags, and these were then thrown outside through the barred little window of the wagon. Urine was disposed of directly through the gaps in the wagon doors. The hardest part was the beginning of the journey. The train took us into the unknown. The days were uncertain, and the fate unknown. The train moved slowly, stopped, went back a few kilometers, then shortly after went forward again. For the first time after two days and nights, it stopped for a longer time in Lublin, where the wagons were opened, and it was allowed to fetch water and clean the wagons from the accumulated dirt. At this point, I mention that during the transport there was not much escort to be seen. The persons responsible for the transport announced during the stops that it was not allowed to leave the wagons; furthermore, other necessary information was given if the corresponding necessity required it. In Lublin, a selection took place. People who carried live inventory (goats, cows, horses, dogs, and cats) had to leave them there. They probably received a receipt for this. I saw how deeply these people fell into despair over this. It also happened that the train stopped again after a few hours of travel, stood still for quite a long time, then returned to the station it had come from because military transports had priority. Here I mention that an accident occurred in Bydgoszcz. A twelve-year-old boy, who while attending to his physiological needs had gone under some freight wagon, did not jump out in time when the train suddenly started moving and had his legs cut off by the wagon wheels. He was taken to the hospital in Bydgoszcz. ? People had to relieve themselves even under such conditions.P. 5/27, 8/27 and 9/27 III. 4. P. 5/27 III. The Arrival in Kahla and the REIMAHG Camps 4. Do you remember which camp you initially arrived at? Were you then transferred to another one? After a two-week journey, we first arrived at a transit camp in Poznań. We were quartered in barracks with several families in one hall (room). Each person was assigned a wooden cot without a straw sack and without bedding. In this camp, we received hot meals in the form of black coffee without sugar (saccharin was current at the time), a portion of bread, one eighth weighing 250 grams, a cube of margarine or jam, and for lunch a very thin soup. The food supplies we had brought with us ran out. For the first time, I experienced what hunger meant. Another selection was carried out in the Poznań camp. As far as I remember from conversations with adults, it involved signing a document of loyalty in behavior towards German authorities. After a one-week stay in the Poznań camp, we were taken to a similar camp in Erfurt. There, everyone was led to a bathhouse (a first bath after three weeks), where all male persons had their heads shaved, were bathed, and all clothing was disinfected. I would like to add that the bath consisted of: we walked naked under the showers, and while moving forward, at a narrow passage, some worker stood and splattered the passersby with a gray soapy liquid. This liquid stung painfully in the eyes, but there was no water. Only after a few minutes was cold water turned on for us, but only for a few seconds. During this short time, one could just rinse this stinking and stinging soap solution from the face. For this described bathing, the men went with their sons and the women with their daughters: but there were also cases where a single woman who had a son and feared being separated from him during the bathing process simply took him into the bath with her. Thus, he took the bath together with the women stripped naked to the waist. A photo was taken of every adult from fourteen years upwards and marked with a number and date. Afterwards, the necessary documents were handed out. P. 6/28 Photos: My father, 44 years old, Władysław Steć My mother, 46 years old, Jósefa Steć My sister, 14 years old, Teresa Steć My brother, 16 years old, Stanisław Steć All with photos AEL Erfurt (presumably Foreigners Registration Camp Erfurt) – the father and brother with date 8.8.44 and numbers 33/434 and 33/439, the sister and presumably also the mother with date 9.8.44 and numbers 33/576 and 33/575 – thus presumably a larger transport/registration at that time. P. 7/27 Photographed work card for foreign laborers in the occupied eastern territories in the name Stez, Jusefa, employed as metal auxiliary worker, 23 A5 Work book no. A 230/Ka.4189 Workplace Reimahg Kahla Personnel Office Großeutersdorf Employed on 14.8.44 Issued apparently Dec. 44 Employment Office Jena P. 8/27 Work card for my brother Stanisław Steć, 16 years old (Pol. Präs. Erfurt) P. 8/27 We were only four days and nights in the transit camp in Erfurt. As long as I live, this camp will remain in my memory, compared to the Poznań camp there was an indescribable filth here. We slept on single-tier cots. After the lights went out, the bedbugs attacked the sleepers in the barrack, as this vermin lowered itself from the ceiling onto the face and the whole body. I still remember that we therefore went outside in front of the barrack to sleep under the open sky. Fortunately, the weather was kind. The next stage of the journey, it was the last, the journey to the Reimahg camp2 (Construction Camp 2) in Orlamünde, district Stadtroda. Within a few kilometers around the village of Orlamünde there were forced labor camps in which Polish forced laborers as well as forced laborers of other nationalities were housed. Camp No. 3 – Ukrainians. Regarding the journey to the camp in which we were forced to live for nine months, I remember that we were transported from Erfurt to Kahla, the town closest to the camp (5 kilometers), in passenger wagons and from Kahla to the camp we walked on foot. Our luggage was loaded onto vehicles and driven to us in the camp the following day. Nothing was lost. When we arrived at the camp, it was already dark. No one knew where we were. We were shown the barracks in which we were now to live. Camp 2 Reimahg was located in the forest on the slope of a not too high hill 1 km from the village of Orlamünde. The camp had been built shortly before our arrival with the purpose of housing about 3000 forced laborers. We were accommodated in the new barracks, which were also equipped with new cots for sleeping. P. 9/27 The most important points on the camp grounds included the residential barracks, the administration barrack, the infirmary, a huge dining hall next to the kitchen, the economic barrack, shared washrooms with only cold water from taps, long corridors and the latrines initially only dug-out pits with a seating bar above. The camp had a gate entrance but remained not completely enclosed until the end of its existence. The view from the camp onto the immediate surroundings was beautiful – forests, mountains. A bridge hanging over the Saale river, small villages on the slopes of the mountains with buildings built with red tile roofs and from a height, looking towards Kahla, a magnificent castle could be seen, a sight that delighted every one of us. Two prints of photos of Leuchtenburg near Kahla How much I would have liked at that time to linger near this castle.p. 10/27 5. What kind of accommodations were there in the camps? What condition were the quarters in? In the barrack rooms (stubes) as well as in the transit camps of Poznań, Erfurt, several families lived together – adults, youths, and children. Each resident received a bunk. My family had two three-bunk units arranged in a segmented manner (possibly meant two three-segment bunks? M.B.). The passage between them was no more than 1 meter. The quarters in the aforementioned camps were in very poor condition. Many different people were processed through these camps. Due to such density, it was difficult to maintain the necessary cleanliness, especially because, apart from the sleeping places, no other furniture was available (table, stool, cupboard). The lack of appropriate conditions to maintain order was also the reason why bedbugs and lice could spread (Erfurt). In the last camp Reimahg 2, everything, as I have already stated, was new – the barracks, the sleeping bunks, the shared washrooms, the latrines, and later also the toilets. Upon arrival at our place of stay, we were therefore pleasantly surprised by such conditions. p. 10/27 6. Was the barrack sufficiently supplied with fuel? Were there the required number of blankets or other materials? What condition were they in? In autumn, each of us received a wool blanket. These were by no means worn out but also not new blankets. Apart from these blankets, we received nothing else for sleeping. We received wood shavings for each bunk on which we slept. There was neither straw nor a straw sack. In the winter, which was exceptionally mild that year, one additionally covered oneself with one’s own worn clothing (coat, jacket, scarf). The barracks were not supplied with fuel. In the middle of the room stood an iron stove, in which wood collected in the forest was burned. Several times I personally cut down a dried thin pine, and in this way we procured fuel. p. 10/27 – 11/27 7. How was the food supply? Was it varied? In what manner and when was the distribution of food carried out? The diet was almost always the same. A warm meal in the form of malt coffee and a soup mainly made from rutabagas was served daily in the camp. Early in the morning there was only black hot coffee, in the evening after work soup, bread, margarine or jam for the next day. The food rations were as follows: 800 grams for six working persons, for children or sick persons for twenty persons. That was at the beginning. In December 1944 new forced laborers arrived in the camp (after the suppression of the Warsaw Uprising) and the food situation deteriorated significantly, because the same amount of bread was divided among ten and for children and sick persons among twelve. Half a liter of black coffee per person, one liter of soup at noon, children and sick persons half a liter. One cube of margarine was divided among 8 persons (250 grams). At Easter we received a soup made from red beet leaves, a few times we received pea soup, but not everyone found a piece of potato in it. The distribution of food was given to the worker after returning from work. The food card was given to the worker at the workplace. If someone was not present at work, he did not receive a card and starved the following day. During illness one received a portion reduced by half. The bread and margarine were then withheld by the brigade leader and subsequently distributed to individual persons in the dining room. IV. The forced laborers of Reimahg. p. 11/27 8. When did the work for forced laborers begin? How much time did you need to get to the workplace? What did the possible morning or evening roll call look like? Work started early at six o’clock. One gathered in front of the dining room and after receiving black coffee and attendance control by the group leader, one marched off to work. The duration of the march depended on the respective distance. Some workers had fixed workplaces, others depending on the requirements of the given day. My father and older brother worked on the premises of the company “Links” (possibly Lintz? M.B.). The mother worked at various places, depending on the requirements. At first she worked spreading earth from the wagons, which was brought by farmers to their fields, another time she worked on the factory premises doing cleanup work. The sister worked in the so-called “storage” for small children in the camp, another time she helped peel potatoes in the town of Kahla (5 kilometers march one way). To the factory one marched about 1 hour as a march over stair steps on the mountain. There were no morning or evening roll calls. The terrain on the camp grounds proved unsuitable, there was no suitable roll call place, and there was no necessity for it. 9. To which department of Reimahg were you assigned? Did the tasks you had to perform change over the course of the work? The tasks were assigned according to requirements. This applied to unskilled workers. Specialists were employed in other companies. p. 11/27 – 12/27 10. How great was the stress associated with the work? To what extent was the work controlled? As my older brother remembered the work, it did not provide the slightest comfort or satisfaction. It required enormous physical effort from the worker, while strength gradually diminished, it required skill, was difficult to perform, and there was no question of preparatory training. The worker wasaccordingly, they were little interested in performing the work; they constantly thought about food or about how to rest and regenerate their strength. Hunger prevented any increase in performance. All these mentioned factors led to increased vigilance among the forced laborers. They watched the changes happening around them intently and were careful to behave safely. They adopted a defensive attitude and were careful not to provoke the anger of the employers or to risk opportunities for a short rest period in a quiet spot on the side. In the end, they were indifferent to everything happening around them. As my brother reported, many workers were not very talkative and behaved completely indifferently to what happened to them. Each work group had its leader or foreman, who enforced the required execution through more or less rigorous actions by their subordinates. 11. What impression did the brigade leaders of German origin or those of other origins make on you? How did the brigade leaders of non-German origin treat people from their own country? My older brother reported that he had a German brigade leader who liked him and often brought him sandwiches from home to eat. I never heard that he scolded him. My sister reported that if the camp leader allowed her to collect wood to heat the "storage" for the small children and another person was supposed to have observed this, she then had to throw the wood away. My mother reported that the German foreman behaved properly towards the workers; he was reasonable, allowed himself to rest during work, and never insulted or humiliated his workers. In our camp, Germans and Ukrainians were in charge. The Ukrainians acted as overseers in the camp, nurses in the infirmary, and caretakers for order. They behaved differently towards the workers. Some were benevolent, others hostile. After the liberation of the camps, some wanted to punish a few by vigilante justice. As in life, there are good and bad people. These are the memories of my closest relatives. It is also noteworthy that the camp overseers did not live on the camp grounds but came to work from Camp No. 3 or from the town of Kahla. 12. What compensation did you receive? Could you buy anything with it? I cannot remember, and neither can my older sister, whether the workers were paid anything for their work in the camp. If one had some money, one could not spend it anywhere anyway, and what would one actually do with it? There was not a single shop on the camp grounds. Near the camp, there was a restaurant, but not for the forced laborers. I also do not know of anyone ever making purchases in Kahla. V. Daily Camp Life p. 12/27 – 13/27 13. Could the forced laborers of the individual camps maintain personal contacts? To what extent could one move freely? Life in the camp proceeded uniformly. From Monday to Saturday, there was a twelve-hour workday. The free Sunday was used for rest and personal hygiene. My parents, like others, had to take care of the children, manage full-body washing under difficult conditions, wash and delouse underwear – everyone had lice. For the parents, it was also the only opportunity to talk to the children, to give them advice on behavior for the following weeks. In the initial period, I had to take care of my youngest sister (4 years old) while the parents were at work, although I myself still needed care. Later, the sister was housed in the so-called "storage" for the youngest. Here I must explain that Sunday was the only day of the week left to the parents for contact with their children, because when they left for work, the children were still asleep, and when they returned from work, they were already asleep. The most difficult situation was for those people who had to live alone without family members. They could not count on any help from others regarding washing clothes, mending their clothing, and supplementing their food. Regarding visits from other camps, I want to express that there was no such need at all. There was no strict prohibition regarding leaving the camp, but those found outside the camp could be punished – in what way I do not know, as I have no knowledge of such an offense. There was also no need to visit another camp because other camps housed people of other nationalities (Ukrainians, Russians, Belgians, or Italians). One did not dare to go into the surrounding villages outside the camp, because first, one did not know the language; second, it was dangerous because of the German youth, organized by the Hitler Youth, who were capable of throwing stones or dirt at one (such incidents occurred). Third, the possessed documents only allowed the respective authorized permission, and fourth, foreigners had to wear the identification sewn onto their clothing – in our case marked with the letter "P." Regarding my modest person (11 years old) and my wanderings outside the camp, I will write about that in detail later. p. 13/27 Copy of the document binding for the camp for Jósefa Steć (year of birth apparently incorrect – on the document (19)00, name Jusefa Stes Reimahg, place 0 1347, valid until 1.6.45 p. 14/27 This sign had to be sewn onto the clothing of the Poles. 14. Did you observe whether any groups of forced laborers were treated worse or better? My sister gave the following answer to this question. In our camp, there were only Poles. The leading persons were mainly Ukrainians or ethnic Germans from Silesia. Poles also held some functions, e.g., that of a group leader, especially if they mastered the German language. Given these facts, it can be assessed that the Ukrainians were the group that enjoyed the greatest trust and respect among the Germans.VII. The Behavior of the Overseers, Officials, and the Civilian Population p. 14/27 15. Do you have memories of overseers and guards? What nationality were the guards in your camp? How was their behavior in general? Regarding the nationality of the guards and camp officials, I have already elaborated on this in the answer to question 14. As for their behavior, it varied. It depended on the person who held such a position. Some were understanding, others hostile and overreacting. Some tried to somehow live together with the subordinates, others wanted to demonstrate their power. Just as it happens in life. My sister no longer remembers the names of overseers and officials. I was an eyewitness to an incident when one of the forced laborers could no longer reach the latrine and therefore relieved himself under a tree. He must have been ill, and going to the latrine caused him difficulties. The distance from the place of the incident to the latrine was about 300 meters. While he was performing his physiological function, he was seen by a camp overseer. The overseer then held him and ordered him to clean up his excrement. This would not have been blameworthy if he had allowed him to do so in a humane way, meaning to use some kind of aid for the cleanup. A dustpan was out of the question in the camp, but he could have used a piece of paper or small pieces of wood. However, the overseer did not allow this and kicked him in the rear, ordering him to take his excretion in his hands and carry it to the latrine. This scene has remained etched in my memory forever. Incidents of inhuman mistreatment, physical, moral, and psychological torment of forced laborers by overseers undoubtedly occurred quite frequently. p. 15/27 16. Was there a danger of denunciation from other forced laborers? I am not aware of such incidents. 17. Were you a witness to physical torment or murders? Do you remember victims? Who were the perpetrators? I personally remember an incident where one of the workers did not behave normally. He could not sit still in one place. He kept breaking free and wanted to run away somewhere. People held him and calmed him down. From an overheard conversation among adults, I learned that this man was severely beaten for stealing apples from a garden. But I do not know by whom—whether by the German owner of the garden or some camp official. What happened to this man afterward? I do not know. 18. How did the German workers and supervisors behave towards you and other forced laborers? No one in my family ever complained about them; they spoke rather positively about their behavior towards the workers. I have answered this question more comprehensively in point 11. p. 15/27 – 18/27 19. Did you have contact with the local population? How did the civilian population behave? Was there any barter trade with the outside world? If yes, to what extent and in what manner was trade conducted? p. 15/27 – 16/27: From the very beginning of our arrival at the Reimahg-2 camp in 1944, no one from my family went outside the camp during the nine months until the camp’s liberation, excluding the marches to work. Only my father was in the hospital in Jena due to a work accident, which I will discuss later. My mother once went to Jena to visit him. I was also in Jena with my mother at that time. I, however, frequently walked through the surrounding villages. I did not work; I was only occasionally “invited” to clean up within the camp grounds. At that time, I visited places such as Orlamünde, Unistad (Dienstädt? M.B.), Reistadt (?), Neusitz, Teichel, Lugete, Kahla. I want to describe my contacts with the German population in light of some incidents I personally experienced. They provide a comprehensive answer to the question asked. With each day, life in the camp became increasingly difficult. To make matters worse, my father suffered an accident during work. His hand was hit by a stone block, and due to insufficient bandaging material and inadequate sanitary conditions, an infection developed. My father was then taken to the hospital in Jena, where his right index finger was amputated. After returning to the camp, my father could no longer work, as he was medically excused from work, and thus his food ration was cut to half. From then on, we were forced to share our common food ration with my father. The lack of sufficient food caused my father’s body to swell. As an eleven-year-old boy, I did not have to go to work, which gave me the opportunity to procure food. There were not many possibilities for this. The most fruitful proved to be begging. Together with my friend, my peer Kazimierz Grzesiuk, we went to villages five or more kilometers away from the camp. In the villages closer to the camp, one could get nothing because there were too many needy people nearby, and besides, the Germans were forbidden to support forced laborers; on the other hand, the Germans only received their food on ration cards. Depending on the circumstances, we went quite far away to beg for something, especially food. This was a great risk because we were afraid of the gendarmerie as well as the German youth, who often drove us out of the villages. However, hunger was stronger than fear. p. 16/27 Incident 1 Once we received some slices of bread, some boiled potatoes, and even a small piece of cake in our bread bags. We returned to the camp hoping that our parents and siblings would benefit from our successful outing. Our camp was, as already described, located in the forest, which gave us some security from dangerous persons of the camp supervision. At one moment, an armed camp overseer stepped out from behind a tree, stopped us, and ordered us to empty everything from our bags onto the ground and return to the camp. Despite our earnest pleas, he did not allow us to take anything with us. We cried. p. 16/27 – 17/27 Experience 2On another occasion, we entered a village a few kilometers from the camp. The village was beautifully situated on a high mountain, but somehow luck was not on our side, so we decided to continue to the next village since we had nothing to return to the camp with. When we arrived in the village, a German gendarme appeared on the street, called us over, and the conversation began. We only knew German to the extent that we needed it to ask for bread, potatoes, or apples. We could ask, greet, and thank in German. We were not concerned with anything else. As we walked along the street, a German woman noticed our situation and, as we suspected, she turned to the gendarme, asking him not to harm the children or possibly punish the parents. Our assumptions were correct. The gendarme was intensely trying to find out our father's name, which company he worked for, and in which camp he lived. We knew very well what consequences awaited our parents. With difficulty, we answered the questions asked. All our answers were made up—fabricated were the name and first name, the company where the father worked, and also the camp number where we lived. The gendarme let us run away. After that, we did not enter any more farms and quickly returned to the camp, fearing the gendarme might "ask" us to show the way. Thus, there was nothing in the bread bags, and we felt the same emptiness in our stomachs. I write about this incident among other reasons because, as a result of this event, we remained without food in the camp the entire following day, precisely because this gendarme, using the information we had given, could not find anyone with such personal details in the camp we had named. Apparently, he then decided to track us down in our camp by monitoring the food distribution. When we entered the dining room, we noticed the familiar gendarme at the serving window where the food was handed out. He stood there watching those approaching the window. For our own protection and also to protect our families from impending consequences, we had to forgo our meals. I must describe this event as dramatic and, for me, a terrible incident. It was not always so tragic. To keep the memories of those terrible days objective, it is also appropriate to report on the better situations. p. 17/27 Event 3 We went to the small village of Unistadt (Dienstädt?). When we arrived at the first farm buildings, we were lucky to encounter a gendarme. There was no chance to escape. Obediently, we followed him to his office. Fear paralyzed our behavior. The worst fears overcame us, that this would mean the end of our excursions. In the gendarmerie yard, the man showed us a low pile of chopped wood. He instructed us to stack the wood pieces against the wall of the farm building. He then went to his office and watched us as we worked. We carried the logs, stacked them along the wall, and did not dare to take a break. Afterwards, we swept the yard together and went into the office, expecting the worst. What astonishment seized us when he did nothing bad to us and encouraged us to eat his breakfast of sandwiches with Mettwurst. p. 17/27 Incident 4 On another occasion, we were returning from a village where nothing could be begged because German soldiers were stationed there. Our bread bags were empty. Our way home to the camp led past a field where Germans were harvesting potatoes. No, no—no way to get anything here. Stealing agricultural produce could lead to serious trouble. Workers caught stealing were beaten. We greeted the working Germans, and without being asked, we took baskets and helped gather potatoes. The Germans watched us. The snack time approached. The workers sat on a bundle of straw, ate pastries ("cake"), and drank sweet milk coffee. My colleague and I continued gathering potatoes. Soon after, we heard someone calling us. We approached them. Each of us was handed a piece of cake and a cup of wonderful coffee with milk. We found this a wonderful feast. After eating the cake and drinking the coffee, we wanted to continue working, but the farmer rewarded us with a full bread bag of potatoes and said we should now go home to the camp. In the camp, the mother cooked a tasty potato soup for the whole family from these potatoes. p. 17/27 – 18/27 Incident 5 In a village, we entered a house where a German soldier was on leave. He was sitting at the table eating a midday meal. At the sight of us, he jumped up from the table and drove us out of the house with loud shouting. While we ran away and were still in the yard, we heard a woman's voice: "Children, children, come here." At this call, we returned. It was the soldier's mother calling us. Of course, we did not know the language, but we understood that her behavior toward us was friendly. She gave us apples, some potatoes, and a piece of cake. And on top of that, she also gave us a plate of beef soup with noodles. We sat in a front room at a small table and ate something that could not even be dreamed of in the camp. The whole time, the German woman spoke to her son. I can only imagine that her words were a maternal admonition. The soldier sat there very quietly.P. 18/27 Incident 6 The supply of the canteen for the camp's provisions was carried out from the town of Kahla. One day, the German supplier of the canteen was apparently forced to transport the sausages from this town using a handcart. It was a small four-wheeled cart, as commonly used in this region. Four wheels, rung ladders on the sides, a drawbar, and two straps for people to pull the cart. The German chose me and my colleague to pull this cart into the town of Kahla. We were even very pleased about this. After all, it was always a change and an opportunity to see the town. The German went ahead, we both followed behind with the cart. The road was completely flat, paved, the views magnificent. On our left side was a mountain, in whose tunnel the factory was housed; on the right ran railway tracks, then a river, and further away lay a village. When we arrived in Kahla on some street, he left us standing with the cart and went alone to complete the necessary formalities. We stood and waited for his return. At a certain moment, we heard a woman's voice. This calling voice was directed at us. When we looked in the direction from which the call came, we saw a German woman trying to make eye contact with us. After confirming that we saw her, she threw us a small package and quickly closed her window. The package contained two large rolls topped with blood sausage. We ate them very quickly. After all, it was some extra calories for our starved bodies. The cart was then loaded with sausages. The return trip was subsequently extremely pleasant for us. My colleague and I agreed that we would take turns pulling the cart. One would pull, the other would push from behind. The one pushing from behind was in the favorable position, because, favored by the fact that the German always walked ahead and did not look back, the one pushing from behind could, certainly not to the detriment of the Reich – I assume – determine the flavor of the sausage each time. Every day in the camp was full of events, some important, others less so, some unpleasant, others pleasant – in total, I believe I have presented the most important ones that one will never forget. Regarding barter trade, I can write nothing. Apparently, there was none at all, because what could one trade with? P. 18/27 20. Were there escape attempts from the camp? What measures were taken to punish captured escapees? We are not aware of such incidents. VII. Medical Care and Death P. 18/27 – 19/27 21. What happened in case of illness and physical injuries? What experiences did you have with medical care, especially in the camp infirmaries? In our camp, there was an infirmary, there was a doctor and nurses. As my sister remembers, Ukrainian women worked as nurses; the nationality of the doctor, my sister cannot say. In the infirmaries, one could receive first aid. In case of illness, one received a work exemption. With a minor illness, the sick person returned to the barracks and stayed there until recovery. If the body overcame the illness, one survived; if not, then one knew the rest. My father, after suffering a work accident, did not receive the appropriate medication in the initial stage, but perhaps he did not even go to a doctor at first because he assumed it was only a minor injury, and later, when the wound did not heal and an infection developed, it was already too late for healing? He was admitted to the hospital in Jena, where, as I have already reported, an amputation of the index finger of the right hand was performed. Today I think that my father took this injury lightly and intended to bring about healing himself, because he did not want to lose the full food ration under any circumstances and preferred to go to work. I remember that in our barracks room a woman gave birth to a child without the help of a doctor. P. 19/27 – 20/27 22. Are you aware of mortality in the camp? Did you lose a person close to you or someone you knew? Today it is difficult to determine the number or percentage of those who died. People generally died after several months of forced labor due to overexertion, hunger, and insufficient medical care. When one fell ill, one received immediate first aid – it was a kind of help, but the sick person mostly did not survive. What my sister remembers is that people died in the barracks, on the way to work, during work – actually everywhere. The closer the end of this servitude came, the more people died. Even in the first days of liberation, some people died due to unsuitable nutrition. They procured meat, and by consuming it, they suffered intestinal obstruction. The deceased were buried outside the camp, without coffins; the bodies were laid in a pit dug by fellow inmates. These graves still exist to this day under the course of a high-voltage power line. Such a power line ran next to the camp. Today there is a memorial plaque there. P. 19/27 Illustration of the memorial plaque: Their victims admonish In memory of our dead To shame their murderers A warning to the living Whether an exhumation was carried out after liberation, I do not know, but I could point out the places of those buried there. My family returned happily in its entirety to Poland. The very closest acquaintances also returned from the camp.VIII. The Release – Liberation p. 20/27 23. Were you evacuated from the camp by the Germans in the last days of the war? If yes, what conditions prevailed during the march? The year 1945 came. The winter was quite mild for all of us, as there were no severe frosts. There was no news in the camp about the end of the war. Life remained difficult. Only the increasing air raids on German cities could give one the suspicion that the end of the war was approaching. It was heard how Weimar and Jena were bombed; in March there were two air raids on the mountain where prisoners from the surrounding camps worked. After the second air raid, a visibly successful one, work discipline deteriorated into disorder; there were even days when the prisoners were not taken to work. On April 11, it was announced that the camp would be evacuated. Personal belongings were to be taken along – actually, there was hardly anything to take – and by evening everyone was to assemble in front of the exit gate. A massive marching column formed. Adults, elderly, and children, and we marched towards the small village of Orlamünde. There were all kinds of convoy guards. They were armed and appeared annoyed. The extraordinarily large marching column moved only slowly; the people did not have enough strength for a faster march. This provoked anger among the convoy guards; shouting could be heard, drivers’ yelling, and even shots were fired. Everyone was seized by great fear of the uncertainty. Children cried frightened by the darkness and the situation, which they had never experienced before. The adults quickly realized that there were not many convoy guards left and that with the onset of darkness there would be a chance to escape. Mr. Naglik, a fellow forced laborer, suggested to my parents and others he knew well to flee from the marching column into the forest. We marched along a field path towards the forest. We fled into a dense thicket and stayed there for two days and nights. No one searched for us, and as it later turned out, the convoy guards had already fled after a few hours of marching and left the people to the road. Most families returned to the camp. In the forest where we had hidden, we were reasonably well off. We slept on the dry forest floor and covered ourselves with our own clothing. When being led out of the camp, the Germans did not even give us a piece of bread. After the two days and nights, we were already so hungry that we decided to return to the camp. There were no Germans left in the camp. Right by the kitchen, people found rutabagas, and from these rutabagas everyone now fed themselves. p. 21/27 – 23/27 24. Where were you liberated? In what physical condition were you at that time? On April 13, 1945, towards evening, we saw tanks approaching the camp. These were tanks of the American army. The American soldiers asked about the Germans and at the same time assured us that we were now free and had nothing more to fear. I will not elaborate on the joy that prevailed among us at that time, as I do not feel sufficiently capable of doing so. Our physical condition then was the worst imaginable. The sister still knows today that she was led out of the forest by her brother because, due to exhaustion, she was unable to enter the camp without his help. The majority of those sharing this forced existence were in a similar situation. After the liberation of the camp, a new phase of life began for us. From the very first moment, care began for us. Until the end of June 1945, we lived in the barracks on the camp grounds. No one went to work anymore. We were fed, and urgently needed clothing as well as brand new shoes were distributed to us. From then on, we also received constant medical care. At the end of June, we were transported to the Polish camp in Ansbach in Bavaria. In the interest of understanding our decision to want to leave the Reimahg camp, I add that we had been informed about the division of Germany into zones of influence and that Thuringia was to be placed under Soviet administration. We knew the Russians, so we decided to leave this area. We were housed on a barracks site. There our life improved further. We now lived in block houses and not in barracks; we were medically treated, there was excellent food, we received material aid of various kinds, German Deutsche Marks (probably rather Reichsmarks, editor’s note), clothing. Small children received care in preschool facilities, and children subject to compulsory schooling could attend the public general school that was in the camp.was established. Students were admitted to the individual classes based on age, not according to their existing level of knowledge. At that time, I had completed my 12th year of life and thus entered the fourth grade. After some time, the teacher noticed that I did not know any letters and was unable to read or write, so I was moved back to the third grade. p. 21/27 Document for Steć Józefa (Identification Card No. 181/II. Des Polish Committee, May 1945 Kahla p. 22/27 For departure to Poland, I received the following certificate Certificate It is hereby certified that the student Steć Jan, born on April 8, 1933, in the district of Włodzimierz, Volhynia, attended the 5-grade school of the General School of Ansbach (Bavaria) from July 1, 1945, to September 1, 1945. The person concerned was last a student of the third grade and received the following grades: 1. Attention and diligence – good 2. Behavior – very good Stamp Class teacher Public General School of the Polish Camp Ansbach Ansbach, September 1, 1945 Head of School (signature) p. 23/27 In the Ansbach camp, everyone received a document issued by the camp authority A.E.F. D.P. Registration record (here still indicating Włodzimierz as the destination) Another document issued in Ansbach (Camp Bleidorn, DP Ansbach for Steć Jozefa dated July 13, 1945) IX. Return to the Homeland 25. When did you return to your homeland? After several months since the liberation of the camp, we made the worst decision in life to return to the homeland. In Ansbach, we were offered to emigrate to Canada. The love for our own fatherland, our own home, and the native landscape was the reason for the above decision. The parents did not know that our Włodzimierz no longer belonged to Poland, that our paternal house was inhabited by Ukrainians, that there was no longer any chance to regain all that we had to give up at the time of resettlement in 1944. The Second World War plunged my family into poverty and was forever the cause of the loss of our material possessions and health. At the end of September 1945, we set out for Poland. Along with this, we experienced an enormous disappointment. My family received a document from the State Authority for Repatriation in Katowice with which nothing could be accomplished. Therefore, after a stay in Zamość from 1945 to 1948, my parents decided to travel to the regained territories, where after settling in Zielin Miastecki (Zielin and Zamość Z with a slash, M.B.) the father found employment in the State Agricultural Enterprise. Until the death of the parents, no one helped us, and up to the present time, we have received no compensation for our property left behind in Włodzimierz Wołyński. p. 24/27 Certificate: State Office for Repatriation Department in Katowice Str. Kobylinski 5 Katowice 8.9.1945 To the Reg. Inspector Settlement in Zamość