Menachem Mendel Lichtenstein was born on January 19, 1908, in Plock, Poland. He was the son of a rabbi and had 8 siblings. Although he grew up in an Orthodox home, Menachem was religiously liberal and a committed Zionist. He met Shifra Kasimersky, born 1909, in Jaloshitsha, Poland, whose parents had died in the 1918 typhus epidemic. She had 5 siblings; her family was not religious, but they were taught Hebrew. Menachem and Shifra travelled to Italy, where they married in 1931/2. They hoped to get immigration certificates for Palestine, but instead emigrated to Paris. Their son, Yisrael, was born there on November 11, 1932.
After the establishment of the Nazi dictatorship in Germany in 1933, Menachem’s father and several of his brothers joined the couple in Paris. Menachem was a skilled artisanal tricoteur or knitter. He also served as secretary treasurer of the Poalei Zion, a socialist Zionist movement in France. When France declared war on Germany in September 1939, at Rabbi Lichtenstein’s urging, Menachem and his brothers enlisted in the French Army. One brother was killed at the front in 1940. During this time, Shifra lived alone and had to work to support herself and her young son, but in 1939, she sent Israel away to an orphanage in Montmorency. Following the German invasion of France in May 1940, the orphanage was evacuated and the children, including Israel, were sent to the Masgelier children's home run by Oeuvre de Secours des Enfants (OSE). After France surrendered to Germany in June, Menachem was demobilized in Toulouse. He returned to Paris and registered with the police as required by law. On May 14, 1941, he was arrested and sent to the Beaune-la-Rolande internment camp in southern France. He was deported on June 27, 1942, to Auschwitz death camp, where he was killed.
Shifra fled Paris in 1942 with Israel, her sister-in-law, and her 2 nephews, Marcel and Joseph. They were separated at the border to Vichy France. Shifra was arrested and interned in several camps, including Rivesaltes, Gurs, and Nexon. Israel was not detained and went to his grandfather’s house in Pujaudrun. It was decided that he should return to the children's home in Masgelier. Shifra was released in May 1943, and Israel returned and joined her at his grandfather's. They obtained false papers and stayed there until liberation in 1944-45, when they returned to Paris.
Israel Lichtenstein was born on November 11, 1932 in Paris, France. His father, Menachem Mendel, born on January 11, 1908, in Plock, Poland, was the son of a rabbi and had eight siblings. Menachem was religiously liberal and a committed Zionist. He met Shifra Kasimersky, born 1909, in Jaloshitsha, Poland; her parents had died in the 1918 typhus epidemic. Menachem and Shifra travelled to Italy, where they married in 1931-32. They hoped to get immigration certificates for Palestine, but were not able to do so and instead emigrated to Paris. After the establishment of the Nazi dictatorship in Germany in 1933, Menachem’s father and several of his brothers joined the couple in Paris.
Menachem was a skilled artisanal tricoteur or knitter. He also served as secretary treasurer of the Poalei Zion, a socialist Zionist movement in France. When France declared war on Germany in September 1939, Menachem and his brothers enlisted in the French Army. During this time, Shifra lived alone and had to work to support herself and her young son. In 1939, she sent Israel to an orphanage in Montmorency. He was the only French born child there; all the others were Jewish refugees from Austria and Germany. Following the German invasion of France in May 1940, the orphanage was evacuated and the children were sent to the Masgelier children's home run by Oeuvre de Secours des Enfants (OSE). After France surrendered to Germany in June, his father was demobilized. He returned to Paris and registered with the police as required by law. On May 14, 1941, he was arrested and sent to the Beaune-la-Rolande internment camp. On June 27, 1942, he was deported to Auschwitz death camp, where he was killed.
Since Israel knew that his mother was now alone, he requested permission to return to Paris to live with her. After spending a few days with his grandfather in Pujaudran, a small village near Toulouse, Israel returned to Paris in February/ March 1942. He was forced to wear a Jewish star, but was allowed to attend school. On July 16, 1942, Shifra was warned by a shopkeeper that the Germans were rounding up Jews throughout the city. She and Israel went into hiding with neighbors. Then they fled south to the unoccupied zone with Shifra's sister-in-law and her two sons, Marcel and Joseph. They were arrested by French police at the demarcation line, and sent to a hotel in Chateauroux. Learning that they were to be sent to the Nexon internment camp, Shifra decided that Israel should return to his grandfather’s with his older cousin, Marcel. After they arrived in Pujaudran, their grandfather decided that the boys would be safer in the care of OSE and told them to return to Masgelier. Their families were sent from Chateauroux to the Rivesaltes and then Gurs concentration camps. Joseph was released from the camp and permitted to join the other boys in Masgelier, where they stayed from July 1942 to May 1943. At that point, their mothers managed to bribe their way out of camp and obtain false papers. They fled to Pujaudran and were soon joined by the boys. The families remained together until liberation in late summer 1944, and then they returned to Paris. Israel's grandfather became the secretary of the rabbinic council in Paris. Israel finished high school and attended medical school. He later immigrated to Israel.
