This is the story of my family which for many centuries lived modestly and quietly, struggling to survive in Germany and whose descendants today are scattered over five continents.

 

        It is my hope that what I have started here, a project which took nearly three years of work prior to the publication of the original edition in 1982, and which has taken me an additional 14 years to revise, will be continued with an annual updating which I hope to initiate shortly. We can then correct any mistakes or omissions contained herein as well. The computer age has taken over for the original typewritten text and hand-drawn charts.

 

        My work has brought me in contact with many relatives in the United States and overseas, in person, on the telephone and by mail. Their interest in this project is most welcome and their help in gathering and confirming information is most appreciated. Coming in contact with so many relatives for the first time is a great thrill, and I am confident these relationships will become more close as the years pass on. The volume of mail has often been so great that it is difficult to keep up with it.

 

        Genealogy, the study of one's family history, is a fascinating field. Knowledge of one's roots gives one a strong feeling and pride for his background and helps to unite a group of widely dispersed people whose ancestors placed a strong emphasis on family ties. It is an area in the social sciences which should become a part of every school's curriculum. To this end I developed such a course of study as part of my 1981-82 sabbatical leave from teaching.

 

        What are the characteristics of our family that have kept us together through centuries of deprivation, discrimination and forced wanderings from place to place? Some of the answers to this question can be found in the eulogy to Renate Hirsch delivered by Rabbi Avram S. Chaitowitz of the Stanmore and Canons Park Synagogue, London Road, Stanmore, England at her funeral in August, 1980:

 

One day the family will commit to writing the story of their early life in Germany, the escape of those who fortunately left it in time, and the memory of those who perished in it.

 

They will record the wanderings and settlements of those who went to New Zealand, and those who came to these shores . . . the happy and the sad events.

 

Today, as we say goodbye to Mrs. Renate Hirsch, I am sure that our dear friend, Mr. Paul Hirsch, the children and the       grandchildren, would wish me to express the thoughts and sentiments of their hearts which have been so saddened by their sudden loss. 

 

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Of the Biblical Rachel we are told she was beautiful of appearance and beautiful of form. The Torah is surely not concerned to tell us of the physical beauty of a woman (although no doubt she was physically beautiful). It really is describing her character and deeds. So, too, our beloved ..............deceased was also beautiful in her character and her virtues        and charm. Mrs. Renate Hirsch was a wonderful wife, totally dedicated to her husband, and in the first years of settling down here was a great help and support to him, working ceaseelessly with him all these years . . . a true life's partner. She was a devoted mother to her children and adored her grandchildren. Her fortitude of spirit showed itself in her unwillingness to miss Shul  on Shabbat.  Although it was an ordeal for her to make the walk, she insisted on going.

 

I am told by my colleague, Rev. Taylor, who knew the family well from when they lived at Dollis Hill, that they took part in every aspect of communal life. They were well respected. Their home was a home of charity and hospitality. When they left they were very much missed.

 

The grief of the family is aggravated by the sad knowledge that Mr. Hirsch zu langer jahren and Renate looked forward after all their hardworking life to a well-deserved retirement, but it was decreed that this should not be so.

 

In a true sense, good people and great souls never die. They live on in the guardianship of God. Only in the physical sense has she died. She has passed beyond the horizon where she will live forever. May her memory be recalled before a blessing and may her good name come as a benediction to all who knew her and loved her. May this bring them comfort. May they all be blessed with long life.

 

        This chronicle, then, is the result of these efforts and long may it serve as a living history of our family.

 

 

        Corrections, revisions, comments, updated and all questions should be sent to me. This book is not published with the intent to provide anyone with a claim to any estate or inheritance not is it intended as a profit-making venture.

 

                                                    LEOPOLD HOENIG

{address, phone number, and email address removed}

 

April, 1982. Revised September, 2005.

 

 

 

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