- This post would not be possible without extensive research by Linda Storfer of Temple Beth Am in Margate, Florida. Thank you for helping to preserve Albert Brunn’s story for future generations.
I love a good story, and this one is worthy of sharing, the story of Albert Brunn; Centenarian, Kindertransport survivor and long time Temple Beth Am Men’s Club member.
The other day I was fortunate to be in the right place at the right time when I got a phone call from Beth Am Men’s Club President Larry Schwartz to tell me about one of his Club members who recently celebrated his 100th birthday!! Larry sparked my interest to learn more about Albert Brunn and his Kindertransport story so I did a Google search and linked to an article from the September 2023 issue of “The Insider: An Independent Newspaper for Wynmoore Residents” where Beth Am member Linda Storfer recounted, “Last month I attended Sabbath services and our oldest Temple Beth Am member Albert Brunn celebrated the 86th anniversary of his Bar Mitzvah. Albert turned “66 years old” which is 99 upsides down. When Albert chanted his Haftorah I closed my eyes and thought that I was listening to a 13-yearold boy read and sing so eloquently. Although it took a lot of practice, Albert recited it so beautifully and made it sound so easy to do. Albert, a Holocaust survivor born in Berlin, was put on a kindertransport train at the age of 14 by his parents and ended up in England. I am sure that Albert has vivid memories of his childhood with his beloved parents and older sister Lilly like mine celebrating Rosh Hashanah although we started our lives in different places under very different circumstances. The life story of Albert Brunn reads like a great novel or a Hollywood movie that will hold the reader’s or viewer’s attention. But it is not fiction, and every word is true.”
You can view the September 2023 issue of “The Insider” newsletter to read the full article “You’ve Tried The Rest, Now Try The Best. Temple Beth Am, Margate” By Linda Storfer at: https://www.insidernewspaper.com/newspaper%20archives/2023-SEPTEMBER-INSIDER.pdf.
Linda Storfer recently sat down with Albert where he shared memories and highlights of his extraordinary life.
“One of his first highlights that Albert shared with me was his becoming a bar mitzvah in 1937. His parasha (Torah portion) was Eikev which he chanted in the Pestalozi St synagogue in Berlin. It was a small and beautiful religious event followed by a party in his parents’ apartment nearby. In those days, people did not make big parties like they do today but it was very lovely, and more like a kiddush luncheon. Albert recalls the night of November 9, 1937 which became known as Kristalnacht (Night of Broken Glass) when he was sitting with his family in their apartment and the Nazis were breaking windows of Jewish owned stores and burning synagogues throughout the city. These scenes left a lifelong lasting impression on young Albert. His parents saw that there was no future for Jews in Nazi Germany and had sent his older sister Lilly to England where the family had relatives and for her to work as a domestic.
With heavy hearts they put their young son on a Kindertransport train to England for him to be out of Germany. Young Albert’s transport travelled from Berlin to Hamburg to the Harbor of the Elbe River where he boarded a ship and sailed to Southampton England. He arrived at a refugee hostel, the only kosher cap camp run by a couple who owned a hotel next door and had access to kosher food. He settled in a refugee camp in Westgate on Sea next to Margate. From there about 25 boys were sent to Croyden to a house whose director was a senior rabbi. The boys existed on meager rations and slept on the floor as there were no beds. Some months later the boys were sent to London where the Sabbath meal consisted of one short hot dog (knockwurst) and cabbage.
Another highlight of Albert’s life was meeting the great love of his life, Ursula Liffmann, whose mother had left Germany to work as a domestic north of London and settled in England north of London. Later, Albert worked as an apprentice in a diamond polishing factory. Albert became acquainted with Anne, Ursula’s sister, who used to bring her laundry every week to the house where Albert lived. Together in their free time Albert and Anne would go together to Bar Kochba, a youth group to dances, choir, and a variety of social events.
It was through Anne that Albert met her lovely sister Ursala. It was a beautiful romance and courtship and the young couple married in December 1944. Albert says it was the smallest wedding he ever attended with only their immediate families, the two witnesses and in the apartment of Ursula’s uncle. The Rabbi who performed the ceremony was not licensed in England so the young couple had to go to the Town Hall to get married legally and then had a Jewish ceremony in Ursala’s uncle’s apartment.
During the war Albert’s parents were in Germany and had to wait to go to the US. His parents were on the last transport which was arranged by the Jewish Federation. A new US law went into effect on July 1, 1944 that stated that anyone from Germany or German occupied land could no longer receive a visa. On the evening of June 30th his parents were granted visas to leave Europe.
Albert and Ursula came to the US after the war and were sponsored by his parents plus an additional sponsor. In 1946 they settled in Washington Heights in upper Manhattan in NYC where apartments were much more affordable compared to lower Manhattan. In 1952 they started a family with the birth of their daughter Miriam. Shortly afterwards Albert’s job transferred him and he relocated with Ursula and their three-month-old baby to Rochester, NY. Their second daughter Ruth was born in Rochester and a few years later the Brunn family moved again and made their new home in Buffalo, NY. Their eldest daughter Miriam became a teacher and later worked at Camp Ramah in the Poconos where she met her future husband, Rabbi Archie Ruberg. Their middle daughter Ruth graduated from the University of Buffalo and worked as a physical therapist. Their youngest daughter Naomi became a banker for a short time and later she went to work for Hadassah where she is employed today.
The Brunns raised their family in Buffalo and lived happily there for many years before retiring to Florida in 2005 to Wynmoor in Coconut Creek. They raised their three daughters in a very traditional kosher home, observed all the Jewish holidays, were active members of the Jewish community, and instilled in them a great love for Israel. Daughters Miriam and Ruth went to Israel when they were 16 through their bat mitzvah club and United Synagogue Youth and fell in love with the country. Years later Ruth made “Aliyah” (permanent settlement) to Israel and joined her son Uriel. Albert and Ursula were blessed with three outstanding daughters and five grandchildren. Miriam and Archie have two children-Jeremy (Rebecca) and Adina (Ben). Ruth has one son, Uriel(Alice), who also lives in Israel. Naomi and Steven have two sons-Joshua and Aaron. Albert is blessed with five grandchildren and seven great grandchildren-Raphael, Mia, Benjamin, Aliza, Raphi, Noam Eli, Noah, and Jonah.
At the age of 100, after living a life filled with many challenges, setbacks and successes Albert considers himself to be a very fortunate man. With an eye toward the future, I asked Albert what he thinks is in store for the Jewish community. He is very worried about the fact that some segments of the Jewish community do not interact with other segments and believes that what we need now is unity. We will be much stronger if we stand together and are not divided. As to today’s rise in anti-Semitism, not only here in our country but also worldwide, he feels that if the Jews survived the Holocaust during WWII, we will survive what is going on today and Israel will survive. However, he cautions, we must have faith in the Almighty and be united. He prays every day for our strength and survival.
Albert Brunn is an active member of our Conservative shul Temple Beth Am in Margate Florida and a member of Men’s Club.. He is a regular shul goer every Sabbath and all holidays and reads his Haftorah annually. He has served on numerous committees of the Board of Directors as well as being very philanthropic and recently donated funds for the chapel to be refurbished and rename in it in memory of his beloved late wife, Ursula. Albert Brunn is a Holocaust survivor. He is a family man-a father, grandfather, and great grandfather. He is my hero and my friend. May he be granted many more years of life and go from strength to strength.”
Yasher Koach and to Albert Brunn of the Temple Beth Am Men’s Club and Yom Huledet Sameach!! Learn more about the Temple Beth Am Men’s Club at https://www.beth-am.org/mens-club, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BethAmMargate/ or email Temple Beth Am Men’s Club President Larry Schwartz at mensclub@beth-am.org.
This post would not be possible without extensive research by Linda Storfer of Temple Beth Am in Margate, Florida. Thank you for helping to preserve Albert Brunn’s story for future generations.
Kindertransport children are child Holocaust survivors and an important part of Holocaust History. They were saved from the horrors of the death camps however they were uprooted from their families and friends, separated from their parents and transported to different countries and cultures where they faced a mixture of kindness, indifference, occasional exploitation and the selflessness of ordinary people faced with needy children. The Kindertransport Association maintains an active SPEAKERS BUREAU comprised of Kindertransport survivors, their adult children (KT2s) and grandchildren (KT3s) who are able to speak in person or remotely via Zoom. For more information about the Kindertransport Association or to request a speaker for your Men’s Club, Brotherhood or Synagogue, please contact Kindertransport Speaker Bureau Chair Alan Peizer at speaker@kindertransport.org or visit https://kindertransport.org/education/request-a-speaker/.
The Temple Beth Am Men’s Club is a proud member of the Florida Region of the Federation of Jewish Men’s Clubs (FJMC); we serve the needs of affiliated Men’s Clubs and Brotherhoods throughout the State of Florida. Learn more about the FJMC Florida Region and our growing network of Jewish Men’s Clubs and Brotherhoods at: www.floridaregionfjmc.org and please visit & LIKE our Facebook Group at: www.facebook.com/FloridaRegionFJMC.
The FJMC is a confederation of over 200 Jewish Men’s Clubs and Brotherhoods representing over 20,000 members across the United States, Canada, Latin America, and beyond. Learn how YOUR Jewish Men’s Club or Brotherhood can affiliate with the FJMC at: https://fjmc.org/for-clubs/affiliating-with-the-fjmc/.
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