History of Sorts

Around this time of year, many 17-year-old kids are getting ready for school exams. Although they may think it is unfair that they have to sit for hours and hours to do their exams(I know I thought it was unfair), they don’t actually realize how lucky they are.

Education, although a basic human right, is not a certainty, and it should be seen as a privilege when it is given to you.

I am sure Heinz Sommerfeld would have loved to have done his exams when he was 17, but he never got the chance. His biggest worry was staying alive, and because of an evil regime, he did not succeed in that either.

He was born in Berlin on March 26, 1927. On January 5, 1939, aged 11, he came to the Netherlands as a refugee without his parents on a  Kindertransport. (children’s transport)

When he arrived in the Netherlands, he was first in an orphanage in Amsterdam, but in November 1939, he was put in foster care with the Lipschits family in Maastricht. However, a few months after the Nazis invaded the Netherlands, he was moved again to an orphanage, this time in Utrecht.

In February 1942, he was deported to Westerbork. On January 20, 1944, he was put on the train to Theresienstadt, from where he was deported to Auschwitz on September 28, 1944, on transport 1458. A total of 2499 persons were registered on that transport. Heinz was one of them.

The train arrived in Auschwitz on September 29,1944. What happened to the other 2498? I don’t know, but Heinz was murdered in the gas chambers upon arrival.

He was murdered not because he was bad but because he was perceived to be different, He was Jewish that was enough for the Nazis to kill him.

Donation

Your readership is what makes my site a success, and I am truly passionate about providing you with valuable content. I have been doing this at no cost and will continue to do so. Your voluntary donation of $2 or more, if you are able, would be a significant contribution to the continuation of my work. However, I fully understand if you’re not in a position to do so. Your support, in any form, is greatly appreciated. Thank you. To donate, click on the credit/debit card icon of the card you will use. If you want to donate more than $2, just add a higher number in the box left from the PayPal link. Your generosity is greatly appreciated. Many thanks.

$2.00