“Ticket from RED CROSS 1939 round my neck as child refugee. Helga Wertheimer.” 

Years after the war, Helga was fortunate to be able to write these words on a piece of cardboard, printed with #6165 in red ink, literally her “lottery ticket” to ultimate freedom. She was born April 5, 1930 to parents who were never married, and appears to have never met her biological father. Around the age of seven, Helga was moved from a rural farm to Vienna where she lived with her uncle and his family. It is not clear if Helga’s mother (Margarete Kohn) lived with Helga on the farm or in Vienna.

At some point, Helga’s mother married Arthur Werthheimer, a toy shop owner. Arthur was kind to Helga and her few memories of him are fond ones. She remembers getting loads of toys, rambling and hitchhiking, and “after that I never saw him again.” Helga’s stepfather was transported to Opole, Poland and eventually murdered.

Helga was confused about what it meant to be Jewish. She started to associate herself with the word “Jude” when she saw it on many prominent places, like toy shops, sweets shops, etc. Not understanding its negative meaning, she liked being labelled as “Jude.” Efforts were made to shelter her from ongoing events; but she recalls a time when her mother (and other Jews) had to scrub the pavement, and she was simply told not to look and not to worry.

In 1939 Helga’s mother and Aunt Elsa obtained special visas to work in England. Approximately 20,000 women able to escape and work as domestic servants in Great Britain.

On June 28, 1939, Helga arrived in London carrying a doll and a suitcase that had various pieces of linen, clothing, and dresses for her doll, made by her Aunt Elsa and Aunt Paula. Helga was confused, withdrawn, and desperate for a family. She was met at Liverpool Street Station by a member of Joseph Bland’s family, her new foster family. Helga did well with the Bland family. She said within three months she spoke English so well that she basically forgot German.

Below are images of the front and back of Helga’s Kindertransport tag.

The following research article, written by Professor Kevin Ostoyich, tells Helga’s full story.

If you have any questions or comments regarding this article, or if you would like to request a PDF copy of the article, please send an email to Mikayla Hoppe: mikayla@spungenfoundation.org