HGIS Lublin is a website containing information about the history of the Lublin city and the region, which enables searching for information about people, events, places and sources. This information is presented on interactive maps, using historical cartographic sources.

We dedicate the service to our late colleague Tadeusz Przystojecki.

HGIS Lublin is a website containing information about the history of the Lublin city and the region, which enables searching for information about people, events, places and sources. This information is presented on interactive maps, using historical cartographic sources.

We dedicate the service to our late colleague Tadeusz Przystojecki.

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GELIBTER (Gutman & Chaja Rywka)

15 Lubartowska Street in Lublin
15 Lubartowska Street in Lublin (Author: Kiełsznia, Stefan (1911-1987))

Gutman Gelibter was born in Lublin, December 15th, 1877. Gutman’s father, Moszek Gelibter was born in Lublin, February 21st, 1841. His mother was Sura née Miller born in Karczew in 1841. Gutman owned a merchant shop [stationery shop] on ul. Lubartowska 15.

Chaja Rywka née Szwarcman was born in Lublin, February 19th, 1877. Chaja Rywka’s father was Elia Bajrach Szwarcman born in Janów Lubelski. He was a merchant. Elia Bajrach’s father was Abram Szwarcman, an innkeeper. Elia Bajrach married Fradla (Frajda) née Kelerman, who was from Lublin, on August 21st, 1856.

Gutman and Chaja Rywka got married May 21st, 1900. They had six daughters: Dwojra Łaja (1901), Tauba Ruchla (1905), Rajzla (1907), Fradla (1911 or 1914), Perla (1915) and Estera (1917).

Gutman, Chaja Rywka, Rajzla, Fradla, and Estera were on the list of the Majdan Tatarski ghetto.

 


Story of Perla Gelibter and Izaak Korenblit (written by their granddaughter, Rachel Steckler)

My grandparents Perla and Izaak grew up in Lublin, Poland and they knew each other since grade school. Izaak wanted to study medicine. He went to Paris in 1935, then on to Caen in Normandy. In 1936 he received an undergraduate degree in chemistry from the University of Reims. The summer of 1936, Izaak was asked to participate in The International Football and Handball Tournament of the Jewish Sports Club (JSK), Berlin-Grunewald, August 1936, one week after the Berlin Olympics. He represented Hakoah Lublin and served as a reserve player for Poland’s football team, which placed second. In 1938 he earned a graduate degree in chemical engineering from the University of Caen. He helped support himself by tutoring and playing professional soccer in France. Every summer he spent in Lublin with his beloved Perla.

Perla Gelibter and Izaak Korenblit
Perla Gelibter and Izaak Korenblit

When Izaak asked for Perla’s hand in marriage, Perla’s father was worried, for Izaak did not come from a wealthy family and Perla was accustomed to a certain quality of life. Izaak promised he would take care of her. They were married in Caen, France, November 1938. For their honeymoon they took a cruise to Ethiopia. After, they returned to Lublin to try and convince their families to leave. Izaak’s mother, Bajla Korenblit née Wegsztajn, who owned and managed a piwiarnia/pub on ul. Szewska refused to leave. She said Lublin was her home. They tried to convince Perla’s parents, Gutman and Chaja Rywka Gelibter who owned a merchant shop on ul. Lubartowska 15 but Gutman replied that they would be fine since they were well established in the community.

Izaak and Perla returned to France where they applied for a passport visa for Manila. Izaak’s father Szmul Majer Korenblit left Lublin a couple of years prior to start a women's shoe store business. March 1939, Izaak and Perla’s visas were granted. President Quezòn of Manila along with the Frieder Brothers, who were American, worked together to save the lives of 3,000 plus Jews. Quezòn is known as “The Schindler of South-East Asia.” Prior to their arrival, Izaak’s father and two younger sisters were already in Manila.

Izaak maintained his Polish citizenship and found work in a perfume factory. Their daughter Gloria Fay was born in May 1941. December 1941 Japan invaded Manila. Anyone who was not a Filipino citizen had to turn themselves in and were subsequently interned as prisoners at Santo Tomàs, a work camp. At first only Izaak was in the camp. Perla and Gloria were given a pass to stay with Izaak’s father who became a Filipino citizen and also because Gloria was less than one-year old. During these years Perla secretly kept a diary in Polish where she wrote about daily life and some of the hardships they experienced. Eventually, both Perla and Gloria were interned in the camp. Perla wrote, “Izaak and I have to wear red bands on our arms with ‘nationality’ written in Japanese. It isn't a pleasant thing, but whatever. They gave us those armbands in the camp, so wherever we go we always hear ‘Poland’ behind us”.

The 3,000 plus prisoners had to provide and cook for themselves. My Great Aunt Helen Beck née Korenblit shared with me how she would visit with Izaak at the front gate of Santo Tomàs and give him kernels of rice, which he hid inside his shoes. Izaak endured physical and mental torture. He never spoke with our family about his camp experience. I only heard from a friend of our grandfather’s who shared with me that a Japanese guard asked Izaak to care for a potted plant. If the plant lived, so would he. As far as Gloria was concerned, My Grandma Perla shared with me that she lived in constant fear of something happening to Gloria. She would “shush” her daughter (who was in her toddler years) to not cry or make any noise out of fear of what the Japanese guards might do to them. She ends her diary, “Be healthy, Gloria. Bez uroku”.

In late January 1945, word got out that the Japanese were going to kill all of the prisoners. In February 1945, General MacArthur returned to The Philippines and liberated all of the prisoners. In October 1945, realizing they had both lost most of their families back in Poland, they decided to emigrate to the United States of America.

When they arrived in the United States, they tried to assimilate as best as they could. Izaak changed his name to Jack I. (Izaak) Korenblit because he was afraid of his name sounding too Jewish, after all they endured. Perla, in kind, went by the name of Paula, or Polunia as Jack lovingly called her. Jack went on to create a successful real estate company, Trend Realty in Cocoa Beach, Florida where Paula stood by his side as vice president and office manager. Grandpa Jack often said that Grandma Paula was a shrewd businesswoman and a feminist. Among Jack’s numerous accomplishments, he worked with state and local governments to establish legislation for equal housing and served as president of the Florida Association of Realtors.

 

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