This article appeared in the July 4, 2003 Jewish Advocate.

Project Search tries to find the answers

By Susie Davidson

Advocate Correspondent

It’s tough enough to lose a loved one. But for those who live with unanswered wheres and whys, the pain is even more acute. For the families of Molly Bish and untold other missing or abducted children and adults, to those for whom Yom HaShoah is every day of the year, the sense of powerlessness is as unbearable as the loss itself.

It is often only the hard work of law enforcement agencies and concerned citizens that can bring any measure of closure to bereft families. The Red Cross’ Holocaust and War Victims Tracing and Information Services works to provide an avenue of hope for those who have lost contact with loved ones in the wake of the Holocaust.

The Massachusetts Bay Chapter’s Project Search just marked its fifth year in operation as a free and confidential service for those seeking information and possible answers to their questions about long-ago and far-off, but unforgotten, relatives and friends.

“The original goal was to bring information to local communities about the services offered to Holocaust survivors and their families by the American Red Cross,” said Regina Szwadzka, Director of its International Social Services (ISS) and Project Search, who joined ISS in 1997 and formed Project Search with a dedicated, mostly volunteer group of people who today include trained psychologists and grief counselors.

She describes the work as a veritable “race against the clock,” given the aging of the survivor generation as well as the ongoing struggle to inform and aid many thousands of families.

Szwadzka moved to the US in the late 1980s from Poland, where her own life had mirrored this cause. “I grew up with the history of World War II a part of my own family history,” she said. As part of her University of Warsaw curriculum during the 1970s, her international student group visited Auschwitz and other camps regularly. Her friends in the Solidarity movement included World War II survivors of many religions; she lived near the Warsaw Ghetto and frequented the Jewish Theatre of Warsaw. “From the beginning, I have felt connected to my clients (who presently number over 500) in every way,” she said. “I had the same questions: ‘Where did they go? What are their stories? Had any survived?’”

“Even the smallest piece of information – a last known address, the fact that someone perished earlier and thus suffered less, provides a measure of comfort,” said volunteer and Executive Committee Chair Naomi Leavitt, Ph.D., a forensic psychologist for the State Department of Mental Health. “Very often, clients tell us their own war histories, which is a privilege,” she added.

“I’m deeply impressed by how important any piece of information is to the survivors, and how powerfully impacted I am as well,” concurred volunteer and Executive Committee member Stephanie Beukema, Ed.D.

World War II documents from the former Soviet Union, including camp and prison records, became available following the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1990. That same year, the American Red Cross established the Tracing and Information Center at its Baltimore office. Staffed by volunteers, the Center has handled 28,000 cases to date; of these, 7,000 clients obtained confirmations of death or deportation, 1,000 received certificates of internment, and nearly 1,000 have been located alive. In Massachusetts, over 500 tracing requests have been made; of these, 290 notifications have resulted and in 20 of them, the person sought was still alive. In every instance, at the very least, information has been obtained regarding ghetto to concentration camp transfers and death certificates, which can even be of great value. “Learning that a brother died three weeks before was believed to have died gave enormous relief to a 90-year-old man, for he now knew that his brother had suffered so much less, said Natasha Goldman, author of “Missing Absence: Trauma and National Memorials to the Holocaust.”

Inquiries generally include first and last name, date of birth or approximate age and place of birth, last known address and location of last contact.

“My wife Lyudmila (Luda Kantor) and I, like so many people from the former Soviet Union, were eye-witnesses to the suffering of those left behind,” said volunteer Misha Khazin. The pair, journalists for American Russian-language publications, immigrated from Moldavia and are members of the Executive Committee. They were introduced to Project Search by volunteer psychologist Susan Berger, who has been with the group since the early l990's and has personally delivered news to several dozen clients. “We help compatriots seek information on their dear ones, or final documentation regarding their own internment in ghettos or labor-camps,” said Khazin.

“Our most urgent task right now is to let people know about the service,” said Leavitt, who emphasized its merit. “The type of information we can provide has afforded comfort and closure for many people who have lived their entire lives with sadness and unanswered questions,” she said.

“More and more tracing inquiries come from newer generations, and it’s more difficult to find information,” said Szwadzka. “But we believe that each answer is a gift – and we hope we can still bring many gifts to our communities in the Boston area.”

Please contact ARC Project Search at 617-375-0700, ext. 240.