Photos and Documents

The Guggenheim family, the Abeles family, and the Merzbach family

These pictures depict Part I of the book, which shares stories from the author's paternal side of the family (the Guggenheims, the Abeleses, and the Merzbachs). This section opens with the coat-of-arms of the Guggenheim family of Worms and their motto, "With all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our might." These words, which come from Jewish liturgy emphatically define this very old and respected branch of the Guggenheim family, who had been living in Worms since the 1500s. Through this section of the book, we see the coat-of-arms emerge as a proud testament to the strength and cultural dignity of the Jews of Worms, who historically survived and thrived through centuries of persecution and isolation.

Heinrich Zwi Guggenheim, a.k.a. Reini, a.k.a. Henry Griffiths - The Army Years

Having fled the Nazis in a Kindertransport when he was almost 16, the author's father, Heinrich Zwi Guggenheim, anglicized his name and became known as Henry Griffiths. Two years later, he joined the British army. During his tour of duty as a British soldier he was sent abroad to fight the Japanese in the Asia-Pacific theatre. After the war Henry returned to London and became an official British subject. The pictures and documents below depict this time in Heinrich Guggenheim's (Henry Griffiths') life.

The Guggenheim family, the Griffiths family, and the Simon family - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The intimacy of one's memory: pictures of lives that survived tragic events.

The Guggenheim family newly arrived in Rio.

The Griffiths and the Simon in Rio - joyful times lived after emotionally draining journeys.

The Abrahams, the Kassners and the Rothschilds

Part II of the book shares stories about the author's maternal side of the family (the Abrahams, the Kassners, and the Rothschilds). This chapter of the book conveys the impact of the Nazis' aryanization policies on the Jewish people and the subsequent scattering of Jewish families.

Sgt. Stanley Philip Albert Thomson

"From now on think of me as an old uncle," Stan Thomson said to the author, while sharing an emotional hug at their first meeting. Stan Thomson and Heinrich Guggenheim (Henry Griffiths) became army buddies when part of "The Forgotten Army". The pictures below are of "my old uncle Stan" and his wife, Sheila.

SterniPark and the Old Guggenheim villa

The house at 121 Rothenbaumchaussee, was built in 1890. At the time, it was surrounded by beautiful gardens and situated in an affluent section of Hamburg. This three-story townhouse, which came to be known as the "Guggenheim Villa," was where the author's father, Heinrich Guggenheim, and his siblings were born.

Today this building, whose walls have been witnesses to tragic events, holds a partially government-subsidized day-care facility, called SterniPark, that allows children of lower income families to receive care and education. There is a space in the lower level honoring the Guggenheim family. The newspaper clipping below reported the inauguration of SterniPark's day-care center in January 2011. The ribbon was cut by (l. to r.) Sylvia [Guggenheim] Griffiths, Ivone [Guggenheim] Simon, the U.S. Consul General Inmi K. Patterson, the celebrity entrepreneur Dana Schweiger, and Leila Moysich, SterniPark's representative.