Letter from the Warsaw Ghetto
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In 1938, Leon Komar moved to Glasgow, Scotland, to study medicine. His family remained in Warsaw, Poland. During the Holocaust, he corresponded with his family while they were imprisoned in the Warsaw ghetto. Their letters were exchanged through Leon’s uncle who lived in the neutral city of Tangier, Morocco. After the Second World War, Leon searched for his family members but learned that they had all perished in the Holocaust.
"One can only sense the utter despair along with hope against hope that the nightmare will be over one day. It is possible that the hope we will all meet and I will pull them out from this hell gave them the extra push to go on living." — Dr. Leon Komar, commentary on his letters, May 1996.
Donated to the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre by Dr. Leon Komar. RA022-00-02-01
Transcript
[Translated from the original Polish]
[Front side]
Warsaw, June 10, 1942
Dear Lolek,
We received a letter from Uncle Max in which he tells us that he is moving out to a new location; hopefully he is in his new place now. We have not gotten any letters from you for quite a while except that Uncle mentions you will soon finish your studies and we will be very proud of you. I am glad that at least one of us reached his aim. Write me in detail what speciality you have chosen and what kind of degree you will get. There are no great changes here. We are keeping our head above water and we are waiting for better times. We think of you often and we try to imagine what our meeting will be like. Of one thing we are sure — we will try with all our power to get out of here. There is no news from Jerzyk and Adam unfortunately. Their mother naturally worries about it. All the best, your Iza
Dear Lolek,
All your letters were received. Write as much as you can as this is our only pleasure. At home things are under control; we are healthy, feeling well, including Iza. We hope that this great calamity will end one day. Best regards, mother
Dear Lolek,
Your letters are the whole world for us. When one arrives, it is as if a new spirit entered into us. We are alive and we are healthy and our only hope is to see you again. We are all living in one room, but we are not complaining; let us be healthy. Iza looks well and we are holding on. Love, Balbina.