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| Ruth, Judi, Meir. |
Ruth's two sets of grandparents, maternal and paternal (the Heilbuts and the Mindens), were good friends. As a result, her father Henry and his wife Anna Sophie Heilbut grew up practically next door to each other -- and then they married.
Henry was the oldest of the 11 siblings (10 surviving); he was born in 1890. When his brother Ernest (Ernst) would come to visit his "big brother," there was always a lot of joking, because Henry was relatively short, and Ernest was very tall -- so, who was the "big" one? Because Ernst was so tall, he often bent down to listen or speak with people who were shorter than him. Henry's wife Anna would often say to Ernst "you must keep your back straight!"
Before World Ware II, Henry and his family were living in Germany. Because Henry had lived in England for several years in the early 1900s, he was a British subject and was able to ensure the status of "British by Birth" to his wife and children. Just before Kristallnacht, they feared for their lives and had to flee from Germany. Being British subjects allowed them to escape from Germany. In addition, Henry was easily able to get a new job when he arrived in England in 1938 because he was already British.
When the war began, Ernest and his family lived in Woking, outside London and practically in the country. Henry and family lived in London, without a car, but would visit when they could. Henry and Ernest's mother Sophie lived for some time with Ernest and family, another reason to visit. Henry was born in England so did not need a visa when he moved there, and was able to get a job right away.
When Ernest's sons were bar mitzvah, this was in the Reform tradition, so it took place on Sunday, not on Shabbes, and Ruth (from the Orthodox part of the family) could be there.
Ruth's parents lived in northwest (NW) London, in Golders Green; Ernest's wife Lena moved there after her divorce, and they were able to walk to shul.
When Henry and Anna first arrived in England, they had very little money -- Ruth's recollection is that when they escaped from Germany, each person could carry 20 marks, or about 20 dollars today. So at first their home in Alba Gardens (see document below) was a rental, and later they moved. They had used furniture, including a dining table that could be expanded with a leaf that didn't fit very well. When the children, including cousin Nucu (Nicholas Minden, son of Richard), would play pingpong on the table, the misfit portion made the game unique!
Nucu was born in Bucharest (his mother was Romanian). Ruth recalls that her own grandmother went to Bucharest for a while (before and during the war?) and brought home very pretty things.
We also chatted a bit about Henry and Ernest's brother Alfred, who was sent before World War II to live in Australia "because he had behaved badly." Later, when it became necessary due to the danger from teh Nazis for their sister Claire to leave Germany, she was able to go to Australia because Alfred could sponsor her there. This changed the family narrative to saying that it was beshert (meant to be by G-d) that Alfred be there, to save Claire. [See http://minden-family.blogspot.com/2016/03/alfred-minden-every-large-family-has.html]
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