Founding Members

Who Were the 18 people?

The attendance list for the gathering at Siegbert Fechenbach’s flat on 7 September 1945 includes the host and 17 other people. We present them here in the order in which they are listed.

Anwesenheitsliste bei der Gründung am 7. September 1945Sammlung Jürgen Nitsche

Aladar Reizmann

Reizmann is a Social Democrat, an insurgent and a revolutionary who fled Hungary for Chemnitz to escape political repression. Even after 1933, he remained active in the resistance and consistently evaded arrest and deportation.

The story of Aladar Reizmann

Albert Epstein

Epstein was a department manager at the renowned Tietz department store in Chemnitz, and later became the owner of his own fabric company. He survived the Buchenwald concentration camp, forced labour in Chemnitz and, finally, the Theresienstadt ghetto.

The story of Albert Epstein

Leo Sonder

Leo Sonder fought in the First World War and started a family in Chemnitz. From 1939 onwards, he was forced to live in compulsory accommodation, known as ‘Judenhäuser’, and was deported to the Theresienstadt ghetto in September 1942. He subsequently survived Auschwitz and numerous death marches, including those to the Sachsenhausen, Flossenbürg and Natzweiler camps.

The story of Leo Sonders

Max Abel

After spending years in the USA, Abel returned to Chemnitz, served in the First World War and worked as a sales representative. Between 1938 and 1945, he survived Buchenwald concentration camp, forced labour in Chemnitz and, finally, the Theresienstadt ghetto.

The story of Max Abel

Maximilian Holderer

Little is known about Maximilian Holderer other than his date of birth and the fact that he was in Chemnitz in September 1945. An entry in an address book reveals his address, but it remains unclear how Holderer lived through and survived the Nazi era. After the congregation was founded, all trace of him is lost.

The story of Maximilian Holderer

Erich Wangenheim

As a soldier in the First World War, Wangenheim was seriously wounded. Within the Reich Association of Jewish Frontline Soldiers, of which he was head of the Chemnitz branch, he kept the memory of Jewish soldiers alive. His business was severely affected by the April boycott of 1933, and he was soon forced to close it. He survived the Theresienstadt ghetto and returned briefly to Chemnitz before emigrating to Israel.

The story of Erich Wangenheim

Hans-Peter Gurau (Shimon Giora)

Peter Gurau joined the Zionist movement and prepared for emigration in "Hachshara" camps before being deported to Auschwitz in 1943. After a short time in Chemnitz, he moved on to Kibbutz Buchenwald and eventually emigrated to Palestine after all.

The story of Peter Gurau

Adolf Diamant

In October 1938, Adolf Diamant was deported to Poland with his family. He survived the Łódź ghetto and several concentration camps, including Auschwitz, and was liberated in May 1945 in Wöbbelin, near Schwerin. In 1948–49, he fought in the Israeli War of Independence and later moved to Frankfurt am Main.

The Story of Adolf Diamant

Salomon Sterinberg

Sterinberg worked in commerce before being forced into labour from 1940 onwards. He survived the Theresienstadt ghetto and returned to Chemnitz. As a member of the executive committee of the Jewish Community and later of the Association of Jewish Communities in the GDR, he played a key role in their development.

The story of Salomon Sterinberg

Siegbert Fechenbach

Fechenbach became a department head at a hosiery factory in Chemnitz in 1912 and later worked for the Schocken company. He too survived Buchenwald concentration camp in November 1938 and was forced to perform hard labour in Chemnitz until the end of the war. In September 1945, he organised the re-establishment of the congregation in his flat.

The story of Siegbert Fechenbach

Klara Fiedler

Klara Fiedler has lived in Mittweida with her family since 1924. Thanks to her non-Jewish husband, she was protected from deportation for a long time and is regarded as the town’s last Jewish resident. In September, she helped to establish the Jewish community in Chemnitz.

Klara Fiedler's story

Eduard Adler

Shortly before he was due to be deported from the Drancy transit camp to Auschwitz, Eduard Adler was rescued by a French children’s charity – only to end up in an SS training camp shortly afterwards. He survived by assuming a false identity.

The Story of Eduard Adler

Erich Jacobsohn

Erich Jacobsohn also worked as a sales representative before his trading licence was revoked in 1938. He survived the Buchenwald concentration camp, forced labour in Chemnitz and the Theresienstadt ghetto. In 1948, he was able to testify against two individuals who had profited from forced labour.

The story of Erich Jacobsohn

Justin Sonder

Since 2024, visitors have been able to sit next to Justin Sonder. A statue of him sitting on a bench stands on Brühl. Born in Chemnitz, Sonder was forced into labour under the Nazi regime and survived Auschwitz and the death marches. He went on to have a successful career in the criminal investigation department and was made an honorary citizen of the city in 2017.

Justin Sonder's Story

Siegmund Rotstein

Siegmund Rotstein would go on to lead the Jewish Community of Chemnitz for fifty years. His youth, however, was marked by Nazi persecution. He survived forced labour and the Theresienstadt ghetto, and would later pursue a career at the CENTRUM department stores.

The story of Siegmund Rotstein

Heinz-Joachim Dataschwili

After a short period in detention, Heinz-Joachim Dataschwili is forced to perform hard labour, but is not deported and is allowed to remain in Chemnitz. He dies young as a result of the hard labour.

The story of Heinz Dataschwili

Marianne Rotstein

Marianne Rotstein grew up in Chemnitz with four siblings and became a shop assistant. Her father was deported to Poland in 1939 and died shortly afterwards in the Warsaw Ghetto. Rotstein joined the ‘Hachshara’ movement and set out to prepare for her emigration to Palestine. However, in 1944 she was arrested and eventually survived the Theresienstadt ghetto. She later emigrated to the USA.

The story of Marianne Rotstein

Hulda Großmann

Hulda Großmann grew up in Thuringia and later moved with her family to Chemnitz. She had been a widow since 1932 and was forced to sell her house at Neumarkt 10. Of her four children, only one son survived, having managed to emigrate in time. The others were murdered in the Bełżyce ghetto, Auschwitz concentration camp and the Sobibór extermination camp. She survived Theresienstadt and returned to Chemnitz in June 1945.

The story of Hulda Großmann