Soccer Dad: Trading places at aushwitz

December 7, 2009

Trading places at aushwitz

BBC profiles an Englishman who had been a POW during WWII, Denis Avey. Avey had been held in the POW camp adjoining Auschwitz and twice, switched clothes - his uniform for an inmate's rags - and places with a Jewish man in Aushwitz, Ernst Lobethall.

Lobethall survived Aushwitz, in part, because of his acquaintanceship with Avey.

He arranged for cigarettes, chocolate and a letter from Susana to be sent to him and smuggled them to his friend. Cigarettes were more valuable than gold in the camp and he hoped he would be able to trade them for favours to ease his plight - and he was right.
Mr Lobethall traded two packs of Players cigarettes in return for getting his shoes resoled. It helped save his life when thousands perished or were murdered on the notorious death marches out of the camps in winter in 1945.

Think about that. A pair of shoes saved his life! Lobethall moved to the States and, according to the article, lived a long life. Denis Avey is still alive and recently met Lobethall's sister Susana, who had escaped to England before the war.

Quite an extraordinary man.

Crossposted on Yourish.

Posted by SoccerDad at December 7, 2009 5:33 AM

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