Viviane’s Story ebook

Coming soon , the free ebooklet Viviane’s Story by Viviane Yarom-Castegnier & Michel van der Burg from Miracles.Media (publisher).
Viviane escaped 75 years ago in the womb of her pregnant mother from the Twentieth Train to Auschwitz.
Isabella Weinreb Castegnier was three-months pregnant that night of the 19th April 1943 in Belgium, when she jumped from the fast moving 20th Train heading for Auschwitz. Isabella escaped with a broken wrist and bruises all over her body, but otherwise without major injuries. Her daughter Viviane – meaning “full of life”, and named so for her will to live and hold tight in her mother’s womb – was born six months later on October 30, 1943.
More on Viviane’s story here in “Escape from Transport XX – to be born 6 months later – Viviane’s story” : https://michelvanderburg.com/2014/04/28/escape-from-transport-xx-to-be-born-6-months-later/ Music : Ameet Kanon singing Ve’Ulai (“And Perhaps”) a capella.
Film ① memo 20190127 ~ Viviane’s Story ebook ~ by Michel van der Burg – Miracles.Media

En Route Transport XX Stop Kuttekoven

Short clip 7 years ago during reportage Jan 16 , 2012 – en route the former track of Transport XX to Auschwitz , looking for the actual site Simon Gronowski jumped from that death train , a moment before the train stopped near that little town of Kuttekoven , Belgium – together with Simon Gronowski and our friends : partisan Max De Vries who then had just turned 98 years old († 2014), Béatrice, and Marc Van Roosbroeck (vzw ‘de werkgroep 10 december 2008’) . ① memo 20190116 ~ En Route Transport XX Stop Kuttekoven .

I Have a Message for You – Matan Rochlitz

Beautiful short doc with Claire Prowizur-Szyper aka Klara .
To escape Auschwitz, she left her father in the 20th convoy ‘Transport XX’ to die.

Decades later, she got a message from him :

“I Have a Message for You” By filmmaker Matan Rochlitz ( site https://www.matan-rochlitz.net ).

Last year Kazerne Dossin screened the doc during the public weekend (together with the short documentary “Lon” by Nina Landau – see post https://michelvanderburg.com/2017/11/25/lons-world-premiere/ ) .

Documentary film “Transport XX to Auschwitz”
More on Claire Prowizur-Szyper’s escape , leaving her father, in documentary Transport XX to Auschwitz :

“In yet another car, Claire Prowizur
makes the heart wrenching decision
to leave her critically
ill and unconscious father
and leaps to freedom with
her husband Philippe Szyper.”

Watch on youtube https://youtu.be/CgE7x4qwQZs
Or visit the post at https://michelvanderburg.com/2013/04/19/transport-xx-to-auschwitz/ )

Viviane & Simon ~ 75 Years After Escape Transport XX to Auschwitz

Viviane and Simon Gronowski meet for the first time in Los Angeles, April 2018 , after they both escaped 75 years ago in the night of April 19th 1943 from that fast moving death train Transport XX to Auschwitz – Simon at the time an 11-year-old boy pushed from the train by his mother Chana , and Viviane still in the womb of her 3-months pregnant mother Isabella.

Today 75 years ago Viviane (meaning ‘full of life’) was born in Brussels – 6 months after she had escaped death that night in April 1943 – thanks to the courage of her pregnant mother Isabella Weinreb , when Isabella jumped in Belgium from that cattle car of Transport XX heading for Auschwitz. She today celebrates her 75th birthday in Los Angeles.

When Simon Gronowski , from Brussels , was visiting LA in April this year – to tell his story and reunite with his childhood friend Alice Weit – Viviane fortunately was able to meet Simon , together with her girls – (grand)daughters – for the first time.

Photo – Simon with Viviane and her girls – thanks to Sébastien De Nys / Viviane
Film ① memo 20181030 ~ Viviane & Simon ~ Michel van der Burg | michelvanderburg.com | 1-memo.com | miracles.media

More on Viviane’s story here in “Escape from Transport XX – to be born 6 months later – Viviane’s story” : https://michelvanderburg.com/2014/04/28/escape-from-transport-xx-to-be-born-6-months-later/

A recent finding on the man – Elias Gnazik – saving Isabella and Viviane published April 19th , 2018 , including a film on the dutch book presentation ( Simone Korkus’ dutch book “Het dienstmeisje van Degrelle” ) – here online : https://michelvanderburg.com/2018/04/19/full-of-life-escape-from-transport-xx/

More on Simon Gronowski and the documentary Transport XX to Auschwitz here in : Documentary film “Transport XX to Auschwitz” – https://michelvanderburg.com/2013/04/19/transport-xx-to-auschwitz/

Miracles Song

The Crescendo choir (conductor : Urbain Van Asch) sings “When You Believe” during the Transport XX commemoration April 22 , 2018 in Boortmeerbeek , Belgium ① memo 20180430 ~ Miracles Song ~ Film : Michel van der Burg – Miracles.Media

Hands

This work by the Belgian sculptor Etienne Desmet is a tribute to the brave attack in Boortmeerbeek by the three young men Youra Livschitz, Robert Maistriau and Jean Franklemon , on the ‘Transport XX’ deportation train – a cattle car train crammed with Jewish passengers, heading for Auschwitz. The story is told in the documentary film “Transport XX to Auschwitz” – https://michelvanderburg.com/2013/04/19/transport-xx-to-auschwitz/ With ‘Last Post’ by Boortmeerbeek’s trumpet player Freddy Verschuren .
① memo 20180429 ~ Hands ~ Filmed last Sunday at the Transport XX commemoration April 22 , 2018 in Boortmeerbeek , Belgium

Into the Woods

75 years later at the site of the attack on the deportation train ‘Transport XX’ – a cattle car train crammed with 1631 Jewish passengers, heading for Auschwitz.
Here in the woods near Haacht in Boortmeerbeek , Belgium, the night of April 19, 1943, three young men from Brussels – Youra Livschitz, Robert Maistriau and Jean Franklemon – attacked and stopped this cattle car train, succeeded in opening one of the cars and liberate 17 people. Another more than 200 others could jump out also before the train reached the German border.
Site was filmed (Sony Alpha A7 III with Sennheiser MKE 440) ca 50 meters from the rails into the woods , last Sunday April 22, 2018, Boortmeerbeek , Belgium
Note , last sunday another video called ‘Mood’ showed the attack site at the rail. ① memo 20180424 ~ Into the Woods

The story is told in the documentary film “Transport XX to Auschwitz” – https://michelvanderburg.com/2013/04/19/transport-xx-to-auschwitz/