Jewish Boy's Escape from Austria to Belgium

The contributor shared that her father, Alexander Klein, was born into a family with five children in Vienna, Austria, in 1924. The contributor noted that her paternal grandparents had fled Lithuania and Poland. The family stayed in Vienna until Kristallnacht, at which time they decided to leave Austria separately.

The contributor explained that Alexander's parents had him board a train to Cologne, Germany, and then walk to Belgium. The contributor highlighted that Alexander was interrogated by SS officers at the border, and he was directed back to Germany. Alexander then walked 45 miles to Verviers, Belgium, which was later written about in a newspaper. The contributor shared that Alexander initially lived in a Belgian orphanage and was relocated in a Kindertransport rescue effort before eventually moving in with family in Manchester in May 1939.

The contributor noted that one of Alexander's sisters escaped using the passport of a family friend's daughter who had died. Alexander's parents got onto different boats in Belgium; Alexander's father ended up in France, where he remained for the rest of the war, and his mother and brothers found their way to Manchester. The contributor stated that Alexander signed up for the Royal Air Force at age 18 and became a Morse code operator. While he was posted in France, Alexander found his father while out walking, and he served in the Royal Air Force until 1947.

The contributor noted that Alexander's older brother, Simpson, moved to Canada and started a clothing business. Alexander set up a textiles business in Scotland, while one of his sisters settled in London. Alexander married Joan McEnttagart, a Roman Catholic who later converted to Judaism in London.