DL9

Name/email: Pauline Fittkau / fittepaula@web.de School: Einhardschule Seligenstadt Age: 13 Country: Germany

1) How does your community (school, town, country) select to remember World War II? Examples: holidays, memorials, songs, movies, books…

In our town there are several monuments which were built to remember the soldiers who died in WW I and II. On memorialday, called “Volkstrauertag” wreathes are laid down at the monuments. There also exist some books written by people who lives in our town during WW II. Before WWII we had a synagoge in our toen for the Jewish people but it was burnt down in the so-called “Reichskristallnacht”. Now they try to rebuild it in memory of the Jewish people. To remember the Jewish families in our town who died in WW II, there are golden paving stones in front of the houses they lived in.

2) Do you know of anyone who was involved in some aspect of the World War II? If so, what is their connection? If possible, can you send a picture?

The dads of my grandparents have all been soldiers in WW II. My grandparents themselves were children during that war. They told us several things about how it was being a child in that war, for example what they feel during a bomb attack. At the end of WW II the houses and flats of my grandparents were occupied by American soldiers, but they all tell about a friendly relationship and some of them were in contact to those American soldiers and their families for many years. The dad of my grandpa was in Russian captivity. He didn't like to talk about this time later on, but we all know, that he suffered in this time. He came home as an “old man” even he just was 41 years old.

3) Is there anything else you would like to add?

I would like to add that no men in our family became a soldier because they liked to be or due to their political convictions. They all were forced to do so and it was a very hard time for them and also for their families.