Dear Members and Friends,

The past few months have continued to be challenging. It has been, for me, a time of grief and deep reflection. In many ways, the Australia, which provided a safe haven for our families after the Second World War, has shifted since October last year.

Here in Sydney, the ASPJ Committee has been reflecting on our role. We are exploring new avenues of engagement to find meaningful ways of connection with our friends in the Polish community, and beyond.

As a backdrop, the ASPJ’s recent events have woven together threads of history, memory, and resilience. In June, we had the privilege of hearing from award-winning photographer Chuck Fishman, who shared his powerful and poignant work documenting what he thought was the final chapter of Jewish life in Poland from 1975 to 1979. The unexpected revival of these fractured communities came about with the collapse of the Communist government in June 1989, fostering new hope.

This month, September 2024, the ASPJ was fortunate to host a webinar “In the Shadow of March ‘68”, featuring a conversation between Rabbi Yitzhak Rapoport from Warsaw and Professor Lucy Taksa, ASPJ Board Member. Their talk focused on the momentous events that occurred in Poland in 1968 and the anti-Zionist campaign that began in the aftermath of the Six-Day War in 1967. This ultimately led to the expulsion of some 13,000 Polish Jews. If you were unable to attend this thought-provoking webinar it is available for viewing on this ASPJ website and at: https://youtu.be/B7x79yFEq28.

Meanwhile, the ASPJ NSW Board continues to recalibrate its mission with the promise of some new initiatives in 2025. We hope you will join us. 

Thank you for your continued support and involvement as we navigate these complex times together.

Shana Tova Umetukah,

Estelle Rozinski,

ASPJ Co-Vice President N.S.W.
info@polishjews.org.au

BERNARD KORBMAN, OAM

Life Membership awarded December 2021

Since its foundation back in 2009, Bernard Korbman OAM has been the philosophical and spiritual driving force behind the Australian Society of Polish Jews & Their Descendants. It was his ideal and motivation that inspired the rebirth of a Polish-Jewish organisation after what had been a hiatus of more than twenty-five years.

For the past eleven years, Bernard has served the ASPJ as its Founding President, President, Co-President, Vice-President and Board member. However, he has felt that now was the right time for him to step down and allow others to take the reins.

IZYDOR MARMUR, OAM

Life Membership awarded December 2021

Izydor Marmur OAM is one of the foundation members of the Australian Society of Polish Jews and Their Descendants. Since its foundation in 2009, Izy has served our organisation in many capacities, including as President, Vice-President and, until today, as Editor of the ASPJ’s publication “Haynt”.

He was a co-Instigator of the Friends of Poland Victorian Parliamentary Group. In 2014, he was presented with a Volunteer Award by Jewish Community Council of Victoria. Izydor, along with others, has been a driving force in bringing Victoria’s Polish and Jewish communities closer together.

Welcome to the new and upgraded website of the Australian Society of Polish Jews and Their Descendants!

Our original website went online in 2009, following the emergence of the ASPJ from the dormant remains of the Worldwide Fedaration of Polish Jews. Since then, the website underwent a minor facelift but, with the advent of more advanced website, multi-platform and multimedia technology, it was really time to take advantage of these advancements and to develop an entirely new website.

In putting this new website online, I’d like to draw a few of its new features to your attention:

• The top left-hand corner now features the ability to instantly translate everything from English into either Polish or Hebrew.
• The top right-hand corner now features the ability to search the entire website for specific text (the magnifying-glass symbol). Next to that are two other symbols – the envelope symbol which will allow you to email me directly and the house symbol which will return you to the website’s home page.
• Notifications of new material on this website will be automatically posted onto our Facebook group with a link back to the relevant part of the website itself.
• When future major events occur, you will be able to register for them directly through this website.

Finally, I’d like to thank our website programmer Viv Rotstein for her work in setting up the structure of our new website and for her patience, both now and ongoing, in teaching me how to use it all.

I hope that everyone likes our new web home. As always, I welcome comments and suggestions which can be emailed to me by using the envelope symbol in the top right-hand corner of any page on the website.

Enjoy!

The ASPJ’s logo, as is the case with most logos, is symbolic.

The Magen David (Star of David) speaks for itself – that,
as members of this organisation, we are first and foremost Jews.

The white background with the red symbolises Poland,
where our roots lie, while the white combined with the
red and blue represents our home, Australia.

The grey symbolises the Holocaust and the horrific events that
affected all Survivors from Poland, and their descendants,
and which will forever be part of who we are today.

ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIP

If you are not Jewish or you are aged under 16 years, click HERE to download Application Form

Even though the name of our Society is indicative of
our general identity, our membership policy is intended
to be as inclusive as possible.

Naturally, we encourage all Jews, whose roots lie in Poland,
to become a Member and join in our activities.

However, even if you are not Jewish but are interested in
Polish-Jewish relations, history and/or dialogue,
we also encourage you to join us and invite you to apply for
Associate Membership.

Even though Membership is open to Jews aged sixteen years and over,
we also encourage young members under the age of sixteen,
who are interested in their heritage and history, to become an
Associate Member.

Helena Ameisen

Board Member (Sydney-based)

Helena Ameisen was born in Kraków Poland to Jewish Polish and Russian parents – her father escaped to Russia in September 1939 as Nazis jackbooted their way into Poland and met her mother in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

They left Poland, realising life for Jews was untenable, and Helena began her schooling on arrival in Sydney in 1960.

Helena later became a speech pathologist, after which she left for married life in Egypt for 18 years. After the sudden loss of her beloved husband, she returned to Australia with her two children and is now editing her memoirs which focus on her experiences and on forging harmonious coexistence in cross-cultural and interfaith relationships.

LENA FISZMAN

Co-Secretary (Melbourne-based)

Lena is a child of Holocaust Survivors from Radom and Kraków. For many years, she worked for the Jewish Holocaust Centre in Melbourne. She is also a professional actress.

Lena has visited Poland three times and is deeply committed to preserving and fostering her Polish-Jewish heritage and promoting Polish/Jewish dialogue.

EVA HUSSAIN

Board Member (Melbourne-based)

Eva Hussain was born in Poland and immigrated to Australia in 1985. She is an accredited NAATI translator and interpreter and the Director of Polaron, a translation and European citizenship consultancy.

Eva’s former voluntary roles include Deputy President of the Australian Institute of Interpreters and Translators AUSIT, President of the Polish-Australian Chamber of Commerce and board member of Polish Community Services of Victoria.

IZYDOR MARMUR, OAM

Vice-President (Melbourne-based) & “Haynt” Editor

Izydor Marmur OAM is one of the foundation members of the Australian Society of Polish Jews and Their Descendants. Since its foundation in 2009, Izy has served our organisation in many capacities, including as President, Vice-President and, until today, as Editor of the ASPJ’s publication “Haynt”.

He was a co-Instigator of the Friends of Poland Victorian Parliamentary Group. In 2014, he was presented with a Volunteer Award by Jewish Community Council of Victoria. Izydor, along with others, has been a driving force in bringing Victoria’s Polish and Jewish communities closer together.

EZRA MAY

President (Melbourne-based)

Ezra, born in Australia , is the son and grandson of Polish Jews from Kraków, Poland.

He has a strong interest in learning about and preserving the memory of the dynamic, rich and vibrant pre-War Jewish communities of Poland. He is also committed to exploring and engaging in contemporary Polish/Jewish dialogue.

RITA NASH

Board Member (Sydney-based)

Rita was born in Poland and migrated to Australia in 1950. She worked as a teacher and librarian in primary, secondary and tertiary education. Her last paid job was as manager of an independent bookshop in Bondi.

Since retirement, she has been a volunteer at the Sydney Jewish Museum as a guide and in the museum library. For the last few years, she has been researching, writing and presenting talks about the Polish Jews, who survived the Holocaust in the Soviet Union.

ANDREW RAJCHER

Treasurer and Webmaster (Melbourne-based)

Andrew is the son of Holocaust Survivors from Częstochowa and Sosnowiec. As a former professional consultant to non-profit and charitable organisations, he has been actively involved in the Jewish community for many years, both professionally and as a volunteer.

As a regular visitor to Poland, Andrew has worked as a longtime volunteer with numerous Jewish organisations in Poland. As a Polish-to-English translator, Andrew is the longest serving volunteer at Warsaw’s POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews.

Andrew is a member of the Executive of the World Society of Częstochowa Jews and Their Descendants. He is a dual Australian/Polish citizen, speaks fluent Polish and is actively involved in Polish/Jewish dialogue.

ESTELLE ROZINSKI

Vice-President (Sydney-based)

Estelle was born in Melbourne and is the daughter of Holocaust survivors. Her entire professional life has been in education and she is most proud of her work mentoring Aboriginal youth at risk and students.

More recently, through her Tikkun Olam series, she has worked as a curator, bringing together artists of Aboriginal, Jewish, Hindu and Korean descent looking for common ground and shared experiences.

The Mezzuzah Project is her most recent passion, celebrating the diverse and vibrant Jewish communities of Poland from before 1939. The “Missing Mezzuzot of Zduńska Wola” is the first exhibition in this series – it is now on permanent display in the museum there.

PETER SCHNALL

Co-Secretary (Melbourne-based)

Peter is the son of Holocaust survivors from Kraków and Łódż. He is President of the President of the Kraków Memorial Committee in Melbourne, which was created by Survivors and is now run by their descendants to honour and remember loved ones who perished in the Holocaust from Kraków.

Peter is strongly committed to preserving the memory of the large and vibrant pre-war Jewish Community of Poland. This task involves actively seeking ways to support education about the Holocaust to honour the memory of the Jewish community of Poland.

Interested in commemorations, Peter is very pleased to receive suggestions and ideas from Survivors, their children and friends. He is also actively seeking vital perspectives for the third generation so as to ensure that their heritage will be remembered for future generations to come.

LUCY TAKSA

Board Member (Sydney-based)

Lucy was born in Poland and came to Australia as an infant. Her family originated in Poland and the Ukraine and survived the Holocaust in the far eastern regions of the USSR. Lucy is a professor, who undertakes research into various dimensions of migrant employment and well-being.

Lucy has been an academic at the University of New South Wales and Macquarie Universities. She was previously a non-judicial member of the NSW Administrative Decisions Tribunal Equity Division, Chair of the Board of the NSW State Records and Archives and a non-executive board member of Settlement Services International Ltd.