Lest It Be Forgotten After I Am Gone: Prologue - 3
Raymond Benedyk, as a prelude to his fascinating life story, gives a detailed account of his famioy tree.
Bluma-Mindel came to London about 1908 probably at the same time as brother Hillel. There, she met Jacob Epelbaum, born almost certainly in Romania about 1872. Jacob, in the late 1880's or early 1890's, had somehow made his way to South Africa where he had been taken under the wing of a sympathetic British trader who taught him amongst other abilities to buy and sell cattle.
When the South African Boar War started in 1899 Jacob, perhaps at the instigation of his benefactor, joined the British army and with them earned gallantry medals for his bravery. After the war when the British army returned to England, Jacob came with them and was in London from about 1903. When he and Bluma-Mindel married in 1913, Sara Rifka visited London for the first time for the wedding. Interestingly, in British records of the wedding, Jacob's surname is recorded as being spelt Epelboum.
Shortly after, Bluma-Mindel and Jacob moved on to New York where she had three sons, Albert bom 1914 died 1991, Reuben bom 1915 died 1988, and Herbert bom 1918 died 2002. Bluma Mindel died about 1960 and Jacob, a year or two later, around 1962.
In 1939 Albert married Ruth Krebbs bom 1914 and had two children, Donald bom 1942 and Arlene born 1946. In 1963 Donald married Karen Shoen born 1943 and had two children Dena bom 1970 and Pamela bom 1973. In 1996, Dena married Steven Lampert bom 1965 and had a daughter Julianne bom 2002. In 1999 Pamela married Joshua Paul bom 1972, and to date have no children. In 1968 Arlene married Ronald Weitzman bom 1944 and had two children Amy bom 1971 and Todd bom 1974. In 1996 Amy married Eric Sullivan bom 1968 and had two children, Olivia bom 2000 and Brett bom 2004. In 1998 Todd married Carrie Levin bom 1973 and they had Sarah bom 2004.
In 1942 Reuben married Emma Koenig bom 1916 and never had children.
In 1947 Herbert married Blanche Glasser born 1929 and had three daughters, Audrey born 1948, Diane born 1950 and Barbara born 1961. In 1970 Audrey married Larry Loft born 1943 and had two children, Seth born 1973 and Carrie born 1976. In 2003 Seth married Jennifer Newman born 1973 and, to date, have no children. In 2004 Carrie married Jonathan Robb born 1975 and, to date, also have no children. In 1970 Diane married Arthur Leeds born 1947 and had Kate born 1984. In 1984 Barbara married Robert Rosen born 1961 and had Charlie born 1989 and Alex born 1993.
(At this time - 2006 - the widows of Albert, Reuben and Herbert, Ruth aged 90, Emma aged 89 and Blanche aged 75 are still around.)
About 1905 in Poland, Hillel (Benedick) married "the boss's daughter" Beana Dressier, born in Poland in 1885. Their daughter Anne was born there in 1907. The following year, he and his wife and daughter went to London where their two sons Harry and Abraham were born in 1909 and 1913 respectively. Also about 1910, brother Herschel/Harris (Benedick) arrived in London and together the two brothers set up Benedick Bros, a ladies and gentlemen's outfitters shop in the East End of London. In 1913, Hillel and family, together with a now pregnant Bluma Mindel and husband Jacob, went to New York where they all remained. In New York Hillel and Beana had another son Arthur (Archie) born 1917, but son Harry was killed about 1921 aged about 12 years of age when he was run over by a truck. Hillel died in 1951 and Beana in 1971.
Anne, who died in 1966 aged 59, in 1929 married Stanley Kramer who was born in 1907, dying 1985, and had three daughters, Judith born 1933 dying in 1970, and twins Bemice and Barbara in 1938. Judith married Seymour Leventman in 1953 but had no children. In 1966 Bemice married Alan 'Happy' Leader bom 1938 and had two daughters, Anne bom 1967 and Audrey bom 1971. In 2004 Anne married Andrew Kay bom 1966. Barbara in 1963 married Gerald August bom 1934 and had David bom 1966 and Rachel bom 1968. In 1996 David married Anne Smith bom 1966 and had Claire bom 1998 and Ethan born 2000. In 1998 Rachel married Jack Dapkewicz bom 1960 and had Adam bom 2001 and Hannah born 2003.
Abe married during the war but divorced soon after. He married again in the 1960's to Catherine Smith, who predeceased him by some six weeks in 1980 when he died aged 67. He was reputed to have had an illegitimate child born before the war, but there is no confirmation of this.
In 1943 Archie married Esther Weintraub bom 1919 and had three daughters, Marilyn bom 1945, Sandra (Sandy) bom 1948 and Helene bom 1954. Archie died in 1976 aged 59. In 1970 Marilyn married Michael Margolis born 1942 and had David born 1972 and Joshua born 1973. In 2003 David married Sabine Janssen born 1965. Sandra and Helene are not married and, at this time (2006), Archie's widow and her two unmarried daughters are the only direct family in America with the Benedick name.
Herschel. or Harry as he became known, married Rachel Nacharela (Goldman) in 1911 and, in 1913, their son Alfred was born. He died in 1989. (The mother of Rachel was Malka (Millie) Benedikt before marriage so it can perhaps be assumed she was a sister of grandfather Abram. She died in London about 1928.) In 1937 Alfred married Betty Sandier born 1911. She died in 1992. In 1939, their daughter Ruth was born. In 1959 Ruth married Mervyn Leviton born 1938 and had two children, Lesley born 1965 and David born 1969. In 1992 David married Aliza Uzbitran born 1971. In 1990 Lesley married Geoffrey Freeman born 1957 and had four children, Gideon born 1992, liana born 1995, Michael born 1998 and Aviella born 2003.
Harry's wife Rachel died in 1919, probably from the worldwide 'flu epidemic rife at the time, and in 1921 Harry again married this time to Rose Fernbach (Isbitzki), a widow lady with two daughters, Hetty born 1908 and Frances born 1914. Together, Harry and Rose had two sons, Leonard born 1923 and Ernest born 1924. Harry died in 1953 and Rose in 1959.
Hetty died of a brain tumour about 1938, unmarried, and Frances, still living aged 91 as this is written (2006), in 1940 married Isidore (Tubby) Turek born 1913 died 1994, and had a daughter Sandra in 1943. In 1966 Sandra married Sidney Hoffman born in 1937. He died in 1999. They had two children, Barry born in 1968 and Sarah in 1971. Barry married Alison Cowlin born 1969 and had one child Georgina born 2004.
Ernest died during the war in the London blitz aged 16 when his parent's house was bombed. He was not killed but suffocated under the rubble. In 1947 Leonard married Vicki Calender and in 1949 had a daughter Denise. Following the death of Vicki in 1952, in 1953 he married Bluma Kirsborg, born 1933, (renamed Blanche to be more English), the granddaughter of our Copenhagen relatives Victor and Pescha Benedikt, Victor (or similar name) being the brother of Abram Benedykt. Leonard and Blanche had one son Alan born in 1954 who, in 1979, married Louise Searle and had two sons, James bom in 1980 and Darren bom in 1982. In 1972 Denise married Peter Rodgers, bom in 1947, and had three daughters, Amanda born 1974, Rochelle (Shelley) bom in 1977 and Lucy bom 1981.
Moshe Chaim (Morris) (Benedik) arrived in London in 1914 with his new bride Cissie (Borkowski), bom 1896, married in 1914 in Poland in the small town of Zgierz (Sgersh) situated between Leczyca and Lodz. She died in 1965, never having had children. In Israel, about 1968, Morrie remarried to Carka Dorfgang, bom 1896 in Poland, who was Hela Benedykt's mother. Therefore, besides being Lutek Benedykt's uncle, Morrie now also became his father-in-law! They lived in Israel where she died in 1977, after which Morrie went to Australia where he died in 1981 aged 93.
