Helen and Sol Krawitz Holocaust Memorial Education Center

The fond memories of my grandmother, Savta Fania started when I was very young. Every summer since I was a baby, my mother Z"L took my brother and me on the long trip, from Toronto, Canada to Israel to visit my paternal and maternal grandparents who lived only a short walk from each other. While the trip was very long and I would endure horrible bouts of air sickness, I loved my summer trips to Israel. I enjoyed the time I spent with Savta. I remember how affectionate and loving she was and always feeding us delicious food, including kzitzot, a favorite of my brother and mine. 

Savta enjoyed caring for my brother and me during those summers. She was protective and would always wave as she watched from her balcony as we would walk to and from our other grandparents' home. The last summer that I saw my grandmother before she passed away, I was only 13 years old. It was only decades later that I realized was a gift she had left for me, my brother, his three sons and my son, and generations to come.

In 2013 my mom Z"L had a recollection that my grandmother had written a book about her early life but it was in Yiddish. My mother,  whose career had focused on Holocaust Studies, suggested that I consider getting the book translated into English to learn about my grandmother's life during the war. We found a translator and the book was fully translated in 2014 by Rivka

Schiller. The book allowed me a glimpse into my grandmother's life and to better understand what Jewish people endured in Eastern Europe pre-WWII and after the war. 

Fast foward to 2024, when Rivka approached me about publishing the book in English, I decided to re-read the book again over ten years later. One key difference is that I am now a mother and have a young son of my own. While re-reading the book, it struck me that the decisions she and her family made changed her life and meant the difference between life and death and will forever have an impact on our family and our future generations. Writing her memoir allows my family's future generations to learn about what our grandmother and her family endured, and this is so precious, as many times stories are passed onto generations through word of mouth and the details can change over time. This gift from my grandmother is that the words in the book will be there unchanged for eternity.

Editor's Note:

The book that Shelly Brenner refers to above is entitled Fannie Brenner: The First Part of My Life.  (2024, JewishGen)

EDITOR'S NOTE: REFER TO REMEMBRANCE ABOVE FOR SHELLY BRENNER'S MEMORIES OF HER GRANDMOTHER, FANNIE BRENNER. 

The fond memories of my grandmother, Savta Fania started when I was very young. Every summer since I was a baby , my mother Z"L took my brother and me on the long trip, from Toronto, Canada to Israel to visit my maternal and paternal grandparents who lived only a short walk from each other. While the trip was very long and I would endure horrible bouts of air sickness, I loved my summer trips to Israel. I enjoyed the time I spent with Savta. I remember how affectionate and loving she was and always feeding us delicious food, including ktzitzot, a favorite of my brother and mine. 

Savta enjoyed caring for my brother and me during those summers. She was protective and would always wave as she watched from her balcony as we would walk to and from our grandparents' home. The last summer that I saw my grandmother before she passed away, I was only 13 years old. It was only decades later that I realized what a gift she had left for me, my brother, his three sons and my son, and generations to come.