REFLECTIONS: 

From the very beginning, as a co-organiser of the event in Sontra, I always hoped that it would be both meaningful and memorable. There is no doubt that this was achieved for me as it turned out to be, in my opinion, an astounding success and one of the most memorable occasions of my life. 

Possibly what struck me most was the response by the Sontra community to our presence. I found them extremely welcoming, hospitable, grateful and remorseful with a general attitude of “we can never let this happen again” referring to the horrors of the Nazi regime perpetrated on the Jews at the time. 

I record my reflections below through the following different lens with different perspectives: 

• As a member of the Heilbrunn Family enjoying the reunion (Heilbrunn Family Reunion) 

• As a descendant of those individuals being memorialised with Stolpersteine (The Stolpersteine Ceremony) 

• As a Jew returning to the country where so much atrocity was forced on our people. (Sontra Community response) 

• As the family genealogist from a historical perspective. (Historical perspective) 

 

Heilbrunn Family Reunion. 

19 Members of the Heilbrunn Family (4 of which have Rothschild connections as well) came to Sontra for the occasion, coming from USA, Australia, Israel, Singapore and England. 

It was particularly important for me to have my wife Brenda and youngest son, Daniel, accompany me.  

I want to thank all those who went to the expense and took the time to come because their presence added so much to the occasion – not only for the Family but for the Sontra community as well. 

I enjoyed meeting those people that I had never met before and only wished we could have had more time together and to get to know each other better. It would be wonderful if we are able to meet again sometime in the future and that this was not the first and only time. 

 

The Stolpersteine Ceremony 
This, of course, was the most meaningful part and main purpose of the trip. Whilst it took over 2 years to organise and lots of hard work, especially by people like Ludger Arnold and Lea Schellhase, it was very worthwhile. 

The event was well publicised, especially by Eden Rimbach, a local journalist, so that there was a good awareness by the local community of which an estimated 120 people attended. A brass band was organised too and the locals sang alongside them to some very solemn songs.  

Mr Gunther Demnig, the originator and designer of the stolpersteine concept, personally attended and laid the stones for the following people at the Heilbrunn House (Bahnhof Str 7): 

• Caecilia Heilbrunn 

• Hugo and Helena Heilbrunn 

• Leopold and Louise (Lieschen) Heilbrunn 

• Mirjam (Heilbrunn) Kahlberg and 

• Meier Harry Heilbrunn 

As the stones were laid for each person 2 students from the local school would read out that persons birth and death facts as well as what happened to them as a result of the Nazis eg “fled to South Africa 1933”. A laminated photo of that person was laid next to the stolperstein by that student together with a white rose with a long stem by another student. 
Prior to the laying of the stones there were speeches by Ludger Arnold, myself and Hannah Kahlberg. Both Brenda and Daniel commented that during my speech there were a few members of the public who were in tears. 

Thereafter the Group moved to the Rothschild House at Niederstadt 6 at which stolpersteine were laid for: 

• Hermann Rothschild 

• Mete (Heilbrunn) Rothschild and 

• Gretl ((Rothschild) Luber 

Brian Luber made a speech explaining the history of the Rothschilds for which stones were laid. 

Sontra Community Response 

As already mentioned, the people from Sontra were just amazing in every way. Much of the expense of the event was paid for by the Council, school and other sponsors. As an example one of the stolpersteine was paid for through the efforts of school children raising funds by way of a waffle sale. My understanding is that the other stones were paid for by the Sontra Council and the grille hutte was organized and paid for by Lea Schellhase and her family and friends. 

This generosity was totally unexpected and enabled us, as a family, to donate 500 Euro to the school to create an annual award for 5 years to the student excelling in history an especially the holocaust. 

The attitude and hospitality of the people of Sontra is in complete contrast to the anti-semitism that is currently being experienced around the world. This is, perhaps, my single biggest takeaway from our trip. 

I also particularly enjoyed spending time with school kids at the Adam von Trott school, telling them about some of the history of the Jews of Sontra and of our family who lived in Sontra. They were interested and engaged. 

 

Historical Perspective 

Hans Isenberg did a very interesting presentation to the family of some of the amazing research and discoveries that he has made of the Heilbrunn and Rothschild Families, which I enjoyed very much. 

Amongst other historical places visited, Ludger showed us the cemetery at the school which has the graves of 7 Jewish people. We also spent a bit of time at the old Sontra Jewish Cemetery where some of our family are buried. We went to old, non-functional, synagogues in Hartmuchsachsen (in which Daniel Heilbrunn davened mincha) and Abertrode. Ludger has formed an organization : “Friends of The Jews Association” whose purpose is to raise funds and retore some of these sites. 

We also visited a house in Wichmannshausen which was built in the late 1700s but was lived in by the Heilbrunn family for more that 100 years in the 1800s and early 1900s. 

Each site was very interesting and added value to the very full and meaningful programme.