Jewish Delegation in Search of Traces in Neuberg
ORF, January 15, 2023
German original: https://burgenland.orf.at/magazin/stories/3190362/
Before 1938, about 210,000 Jews lived in Austria, also in Burgenland. After the Anschluss in March 1938, they were dispossessed and expelled. The Stein family from Neuberg (district of Güssing) was able to escape to Israel. Recently, their grandson visited Neuberg.
At the meeting of the visitors from Israel and the members of the Neuberg cultural initiative, both sides were able to learn more about the fate of the Stein family. Especially for the grandson Yuval, who lives with his wife near Tel Aviv, this was very important. "This is very moving for me. I have never been to Neuberg before. I only heard about this place from my father and also a little bit from my grandfather. To be here - where my ancestors lived, where my father grew up - this is very moving for me," Yuval Stein said.
Jakob and Cäcilia Stein ran two stores in Neuberg. We know about the couple and their two children Egon and Erika that they were well integrated in the village, although one can hardly find any more documents about them. "We have searched in the records that exist, for example in the parish. But there are no written records there. They were not members of the parish, but may have even participated in parish life," says Robert Novakovits.
Candlestick back with the family
In 1938, the family had to leave Neuberg with ten-year-old Egon and eight-year-old Erika. The family was imprisoned in Vienna and finally managed to emigrate to Israel. Apart from a chess set, they only took a few blankets with them. A candlestick remained in Neuberg as a gift.
"That was such a two-armed candlestick that the Stein family gave to my grandmother when they had to leave in a hurry back then. I saw this over and over again as a child, but didn't know exactly what it was about. I only knew that it was a gift from the Jewish family. We have now passed that on," says Martin Fabsits.
The candlestick has thus returned to the family to which it originally belonged. With this project, the Neuberg Cultural Initiative Association would like to reappraise the history of Neuberg. "It is important to know and honor the names and fates of people," says Renate Mercsanits.