Displaced Persons: An Immigrant Journey to America
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Since Zwiesel was not far from the Rehberg, Franz was anxious to cross the border into Czechoslovakia to find his family, to see how they were doing, and to remove as many family valuables as he could to the safety of West Germany. Such a crossing, however, was difficult and fraught with danger. It required a trek through the deep, snow-encrusted forest, where the border would be crossed...and then a swift foray to Rehberg and the family house. In order not to be spotted, this entire journey had to be done under the cover of darkness. This excursion just happened to mirror the trek his family had made in 1938, when they left their homes prior to the German invasion of the Sudetenland. Russian troops guarded all the normal routes into and out of Czechoslovakia. They patrolled the forest looking for escapees. They occupied all the villages along the border. Anyone attempting a border crossing could be shot on the spot. By this time, the SudetenDeutsch along the border were aware of the Potsdam Protocol, and were anticipating their forced removal from their ancestral homeland. They anticipated that when they were uprooted, they would only be able to take with them what they could carry, or even that they might have to leave with just the clothes on their backs. If possible, they wanted to remove their valuables from their homes, and somehow transport them to Germany. During the winter of 1945/46, Franz and a friend of his, Franz Weber, conspired to cross the border. They would use skis to traverse the snow, and would travel at night to avoid capture. One clear night, they took off and traveled by the light of the moon. They made their way through the forest, hid their skis in the snow and made their way to their village. Before dawn, Franz found his family home. He knocked on the door and entered the house. He saw his father sitting in a chair by the stove in the living room. They had not seen each other for many long months. It was an emotional reunion. Franz went to bed as the sun came up and slept during the daylight hours. The family put together a pack that he would be able to manage as he made his way back over the border the following night. After the sun went down, Franz met up with his friend, they dug up their buried skis and they traced their tracks back over the border to Zwiesel. In the following days, they would make this same trek several more times. Luckily, they were never spotted by the border guards.
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About the Book
After growing up and hearing many stories about his parent’s experiences in Europe before, during and after World War II, Richard E. Fuerch decided that he had to preserve these stories for his family. He took on the task of interviewing his parents, taking elaborate notes and weaving a narrative from what he had assembled. The initial product was a forty page binder comprising a brief retelling of the stories that were told to him. After many years, he decided to put it all together in the form of a book. "This is the story of my parents; their family history in Poland and Czechoslovakia; their survival of World War II; their refugee experience in the wake of the devastation of the war, and their eventual immigration from war torn Europe, to the United States of America." "I wrote this book because I wanted to document their incredible story for my siblings, my children and my niece and nephew. While their's was an oft repeated, commonly experienced voyage through life, it is one that is rarely told, especially within the context of the horrible tragedy that was World War II."
About the Author
Richard E, Fuerch is an immigrant to the United States of America. He was born of refugee parents in the Bavarian village of Zwiesel, in what was then West Germany. His mother was born in 1929 in the Polish capital of Warsaw. His father was born in 1926 in the newly created country of Czechoslovakia, in the region that was known as the Sudetenland. As displaced persons, they wound up in Zwiesel after the Second World War. It was there that Richard was born, and from there that they eventually made their way to the United States. Richard has a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the Cooper Union in NYC, but devoted a 38 year career to the FDNY. He rose to the rank of Deputy Chief in the FDNY; He worked in all five boroughs of NYC, but spent much of his career in Lower Manhattan as a Battalion Chief and Deputy Chief. He was intimately involved in the response to and recovery from 9/11. Richard has written numerous articles for Fire Service publications, and, as an adjunct professor, taught a course in Building Construction for the Fire Service at CUNY’s John Jay College in Manhattan. Richard is presently retired from the FDNY and spends his time in various pursuits, including writing and volunteering as a docent and tour guide for the 9/11 Tribute Center and World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan. He is married, has two daughters and currently lives on Long Island, New York with his wife Joan...