Lucine Horn

Born 1926, Lublin, Poland

Lucine was born to a Jewish family in Lublin. Her father was a court interpreter and her mother was a dentist. War began with the German invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, and Lucine’s home was raided by German forces shortly thereafter. Soon after the German occupation of Lublin, Jews there were forced to wear the Jewish badge. A ghetto in Lublin was closed off in January 1942. Lucine survived a series of killing campaigns and deportations from the ghetto during March and April of the same year. Those who held valid labor cards were moved to a new ghetto in April 1942 -- the Majdan-Tatarski ghetto, near the Majdanek killing center. Lucine escaped from Majdan-Tatarski, and eventually made her way to Warsaw where she first entered the ghetto and then went into hiding on the Aryan side.

Describes a raid on her home by German forces shortly after the German invasion of Poland began in 1939.

John Komski

Born 1915, Poland

John was born to a non-Jewish Polish family. He graduated from an art academy and was in Krakow when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Food became scarce in Krakow, with long lines of people waiting for whatever food was available. John decided to join the resistance against the Germans. By early 1940, he and two of his friends felt that they were in danger and decided to attempt to escape to France. John was caught and arrested during this escape attempt. He survived imprisonment in Auschwitz, where he was classified as a political prisoner and his uniform was marked with a red triangle.

Describes conditions in Krakow after the German invasion of Poland in 1939.

Niels Bamberger

Born 1928, Wuerzburg, Germany

Niels was raised in a religious Jewish household. In 1932, the family fled to Copenhagen, Denmark, where Niels's father opened an antique store in the mid-1930s. The Germans invaded Denmark in 1940, but to Niels, little seemed to change during three years of occupation. Hearing of German plans to round up Jews in October 1943, Niels and his family decided to flee. A member of the resistance took them to the fishing village of Snekkersten, from where they were able to cross by boat to Sweden. Niels returned to Denmark in May 1945.

Describes German occupation of Denmark.

Julian Noga