Ibolya
Dawidowicz (Ibi) was born on June 7th, 1924 in Tokaj, Hungary. She lived with her mom, Emily, her dad,
Herman, and three sisters, Judith, Rachel, and Miriam. Ibi
grew up in a strict religious family.
Though, she lived in a comfortable environment where people of different
religions and backgrounds lived together in peace.
On March 19th, 1944 Germany invaded Hungary, and all peace ended. Jewish populations, including Ibi (who was 19 at the time) and her family, were rounded up and forced to live in ghettos. Ghettos were often very crowded and often as unsanitary as a gas station bathroom.
After two weeks of living in the ghetto, they were told to pack food because they were being taken to Germany to work. They were packed into cattle wagons with nothing but buckets for water and sanitation. They realized soon that they were not heading to Germany instead they were heading to Auschwitz Birkenau.
At Auschwitz, Ibi and her family were all separated. Ibi and her sister Judith went one way, her dad went another, and her mom and two younger sisters went another. Ibi later learned that her mom and two younger sisters were taken directly to the gas chambers and died within minutes.
In Auschwitz, Ibi and Judith were taken to a room where their hair was shaved off and all of their clothes and possessions were taken from them. They were given camp uniforms and were forced to sleep on bare wooden bunks. They had little food and water and getting through the day alive was a sometimes a challenge.
Ibi was registered as prisoner number 86711. This number would be the number she would never forget, and the number that would stay with her for 66 years.
After three months in Auschwitz, Ibi and Judith were taken to a slave labor camp in Germany where they were forced to work long, hard days. Ibi once said, “We were constantly hungry, humiliated, we worked, but we knew that the end was coming… We just hung on to life.”
Toward the end of the war, they were forced to march to a concentration camp. Here they were finally liberated by the Americans on May 1st, 1945. Ibi, Judith, and her dad were the only ones to survive from her family.
After being liberated, Ibi was taken to the hospital. Once she was well enough she began working in the hospital administration. There, she met Val Ginsburg who she later married and started a life with in Elland, England.
Sadly, Ibi died on February 19th, 2010 due to osteoporosis in her back which caused her intense, unremitting pain.
On March 19th, 1944 Germany invaded Hungary, and all peace ended. Jewish populations, including Ibi (who was 19 at the time) and her family, were rounded up and forced to live in ghettos. Ghettos were often very crowded and often as unsanitary as a gas station bathroom.
After two weeks of living in the ghetto, they were told to pack food because they were being taken to Germany to work. They were packed into cattle wagons with nothing but buckets for water and sanitation. They realized soon that they were not heading to Germany instead they were heading to Auschwitz Birkenau.
At Auschwitz, Ibi and her family were all separated. Ibi and her sister Judith went one way, her dad went another, and her mom and two younger sisters went another. Ibi later learned that her mom and two younger sisters were taken directly to the gas chambers and died within minutes.
In Auschwitz, Ibi and Judith were taken to a room where their hair was shaved off and all of their clothes and possessions were taken from them. They were given camp uniforms and were forced to sleep on bare wooden bunks. They had little food and water and getting through the day alive was a sometimes a challenge.
Ibi was registered as prisoner number 86711. This number would be the number she would never forget, and the number that would stay with her for 66 years.
After three months in Auschwitz, Ibi and Judith were taken to a slave labor camp in Germany where they were forced to work long, hard days. Ibi once said, “We were constantly hungry, humiliated, we worked, but we knew that the end was coming… We just hung on to life.”
Toward the end of the war, they were forced to march to a concentration camp. Here they were finally liberated by the Americans on May 1st, 1945. Ibi, Judith, and her dad were the only ones to survive from her family.
After being liberated, Ibi was taken to the hospital. Once she was well enough she began working in the hospital administration. There, she met Val Ginsburg who she later married and started a life with in Elland, England.
Sadly, Ibi died on February 19th, 2010 due to osteoporosis in her back which caused her intense, unremitting pain.