George Kolber - Thrown Upon the World: A True Story

THROWN
upon the
WORLD

a true story

GEORGE KOLBER
CHARLES KOLBER

Copyright 2018 George Kolber Charles Kolber.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-4808-6261-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-6262-3 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-6263-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018906715

Archway Publishing rev. date: 6/28/2018

Contents

Reared as we are, in quiet and in peace,

Now all at once were thrown upon the world.

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, An Lottchen

In memory of
Chao Chen Kolber

To properly relate our families complex stories, we found it necessary to fictionalize some characters and situations. Also, during our research we have identified a number of people who, to us, are unsung heroes. It was because of their passion and persistence, that we can tell this story at all.

We have taken certain liberties to make Thrown Upon the World friendlier to Western readers. Most notably, we have chosen to identify most Chinese characters by their given names first and family names second.

To assist our readers in understanding the relationship of our Kolber and Chen family members, we have provided three family trees, which highlight our main characters.

Enough cannot be said about the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) and the Newark Jewish Family Services, which sponsored and found homes for the extraordinary number of refugees after World War II and arranged for us to be placed in the homes of caring foster families. Charles and Harry were placed with Rose and Harry Rothbloom, while George was placed with Joseph and Frieda Hirschfeld. We were immediately welcomed and loved by our respective families, and we remain a part of those families to this day. Were it not for their caring and guidance, we clearly would not have been able to tell this story.

Undoubtedly, Christa played a key role in the discovery of both families, which led to finding Uncle Fu-Ti Chen (Qian) in China and Aunt Lilly Kolber Ozer in Israel, both of whom were anxious to share the details of our families histories.

We will be forever grateful to our collaborator, Loren Stephens, who not only helped with extensive research but provided tremendous insight and passion throughout.

We would like to thank Jerome M. Schottenstein, who was always encouraging and inspiring. He was a generous person who not only taught family values but led by example.

We would like to extend a special acknowledgment to the following people who helped provide critical research for our story:

Mary Au
Cindy Rothbloom Cohen
Dr. Pan Guang
Tess Johnston
Lea Bar-Ad
Paul G. Gaffney II
Robert Hirschfeld
Perla Karney
Elise Brancheau
Lianne Goldsmith
Joseph Jedeikin
Maria Kolber
Michael Kolber
Miri Ben Shalom
Judith Ozer Zauberman
Liang Pingan
Rabbi Marvin Tokayer
U.S. Representative Chris Smith
Effy Pfefferman
Jenny Wang

Finally, we thank both Christa and Vita for putting up with years of unending history lessons and lively debates.

Promenaden Caf, Shanghai

Sunday, December 15, 1946

Ya-Li walked quickly under the Shanghai sky filled with gray clouds blown westward by the wind off the Whangpoo River as it flowed into the East China Sea. She hurried up the stairs to the second floor of the squat building in an alleyway off Chusan Road and knocked on the door. Chao Chen let her in to the shabby one-room apartment. Other than an unmade bed, an upright piano with its bench, a hot plate and kettle, and a wardrobe with a cracked mirror, there was hardly a hint of its occupants: the elegant twenty-eight-year-old bride and her younger Austrian-Jewish lover, Walter Kolber.

Ya-Li inquired, Why are you still in your nightgown, Chao Chen? The taxi will be here any minute.

I needed to practice the piece Walter and I are supposed to perform after the ceremony. If I make any mistakes Walter will be furious with me. I guess the time just slipped away from me.

Let me help you with your dress. I ironed it a few days ago. It should still be fresh.

Ya-Li took the red taffeta gown out of the wardrobe and instructed Chao Chen to step into it. The only time she had worn it was for the recital at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music was when she and Walter played the first movement of Beethovens Spring Sonata for violin and piano. Of all the student performers, they were the only ones who received a standing ovation. And now, two years later, they were about to marryand not a moment too soon.

Ya-Li struggled with the zipper. Chao Chen, youre still tiny as a bird, but that baby inside you is taking up a lot of room around your waist. If you had waited much longer you would have had to buy another dress.

Chao Chen frowned. And with what money? Walter and I are just scraping by. Hes lost his job. The factory where he was working shut down, and the Jewish owners have gone to Canada. She sighed. I just pray he finds another job soon or well be on the dole. The landlady is threatening to raise our rent now that so many Chinese are coming back from the countryside.

Tenderly patting Chao Chens cheek, Ya-Li said, Dont fret so. Its not healthy for you or your baby. Besides, it makes you look unattractive, and youre still so beautiful, especially in that dress. You look like a rose in full bloom. Now, put a smile on your face and lets meet your bridegroom at the Promenaden Caf. Im sure hes wondering where you are.

Ya-Li, go downstairs and be on the lookout for the taxi. I need to feed my mourning doves. Who knows what time Walter and I will be back, and I dont want them to get hungry. Besides, theyre afraid to be left alone for too long.

Ya-Li laughed. How do you know that if youre not here?

I cant explain it. I just know. Chao Chen unconsciously rubbed her stomach. They are like my babies.

After tending to her birds, Chao Chen inspected herself in the cracked mirror. Her eyes sparkled and her long, dark hair curled softly around her face. Her cheeks were flushed. She turned sideways. I wonder if anyone will notice that Im pregnant. She answered herself out loud, which was becoming a habit of late. No. You just look healthy, Chao Chen. Now lift your head up high and show everyone how happy you are.

She heard the taxi honking and grabbed her coat. Lifting the hem of her dress so she wouldnt trip, she ran down the stairs.

The day was cold, dictating that all the guests wear warm overcoats, hats, and gloves on their way to the marriage ceremony at the Promenaden Caf on East Seward Road in Shanghais poorest district. The officiant, Dr. Kurt Primo, seeing the darkening overcast skies, carried an umbrella. Better safe than sorry, he thought, especially since he had two more weddings to perform later in the day, although neither would be as unusual as this. If he wasnt being paid in American dollars he wouldnt have bothered. He could only guess what kind of trouble the groom had stepped into to be marrying a Chinese girl. The young man had a dubious reputation among the members of the Jewish Bnai Brith Lodge. A shame, since his father, Josef Kolber, was such a fine and well-respected man. Dr. Primo sighed as he pushed his shoulder into the wind, wondering how many other young Jewish men had found themselves caught in the underbelly of war-torn Shanghai.