"We [of the Sh'erit ha-Pletah] live not for ourselves, but for our children. We can endanger our own fleeting existence so that the security of coming generations may be ensured."

--Zalman Grinberg, Juedische Rundschau

Soon after survivors were liberated they began searching for their families. The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) established the Central Tracing Bureau to help survivors locate relatives who had survived the concentration camps and immigrated to America or returned to their homelands. Public radio broadcasts and newspapers were filled with lists of survivors and their whereabouts. The reuniting of families went hand-in-hand with the creation of new ones, which was evident in the astounding number of weddings that took place in the displaced persons (DPs) camps. In 1946-47, the Sh'erit ha-Pletah boasted the highest birthrate in the world. One survivor noted, "The first year it was all lonely single people, but by the second year it was everyone with a carriage."

The movement to help both children who were born as DPs and those who survived the war dominated the DP camps. Schools were established early on and teachers came from Israel and the United States to teach the many children. Jewish Orthodoxy also began its rebirth as yeshivot (religious schools) were founded in several camps, including Bergen-Belsen, Fohrenwald, and Feldafing. Religious holidays became major occasions for gathering and celebrating in the DP camps, and Jewish volunteer agencies made special efforts to supply religious articles for everyday and holiday use.

After years of trauma and loneliness, the Sh'erit ha-Pletah converted their camps into active cultural and social centers. Despite the often bleak conditions in the DP camps, many of which were former concentration camps and German army camps, social and occupational organizations soon abounded. Journalism sprang to life with more than 170 publications expressing the Sh'erit ha-Pletah's emotions; 36 different books were published in the American zone alone. Numerous theater and musical troupes toured the camps, and athletic clubs challenged teams from other DP centers. The texture of DP life was so rich that Central Committee leader Samuel Gringauz stated, "Let us be the ones to show the world that the bright light of the Jews will never be extinguished."

 

 

Halina Bryks holds a name card intended to help any of her surviving family members locate her at the Kloster Indersdorf DP camp.
Jewish orphans laugh during a performance at the Lindenfels displaced person's center for children in 1948.
The staff of the DP newspaper, Unterwegs [The Transient] at work in their office in the Zeilsheim displaced persons' camp.
Five young DPs await a train at the Berlin-Wannsee train station.
Jewish DPs wash up in a pool at a displaced persons camp near Hagenow, Germany on May 30, 1945.
Displaced persons often converted existing buildings in the assembly centers into synagogues, a central place in Jewish communal life. Neu-Freimann; Germany.
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