Klara Reif
"Get an education and be the best that you can at whatever you do."
Name at birth
Klara Spierer
Date of birth
05/18/1912
Where were you born?
Where did you grow up?
Cernauti, Romania (now Ukraine)
Name of father, occupation
Abba Spierer,
had a company that made rubbing alcohol
Maiden name of mother, occupation
Hannah,
homemaker
Immediate family (names, birth order)
Parents and eight children. Klara raised her two nephews who were orphaned; her brother was murdered during the Holocaust. One brother’s name was Volcu.
How many in entire extended family?
Not known
Who survived the Holocaust?
Klara and two sisters, Bertha and Regina
Klara was in labor camps and was also hidden in the homes of a few Romanian Catholic families. She didn’t really talk about her experiences, too painful. A lot of family members were taken away overnight. The town bad a synagogue however when Romania became Communist, Klara was afraid to reveal her Jewish identity. Religious practices were banned by the Communists.
Where were you in hiding?
Hidden by Romanian Catholic families.
Where did you go after being liberated?
Ploiesti, Romania
When did you come to the United States?
1964
Where did you settle?
Detroit, MI
How is it that you came to Michigan?
Husband’s brother lived in Detroit, Jacob Reif
Occupation after the war
Seamstress
When and where were you married?
In Czernowitz, Romania around 1940, 1941. Her Klara's husband left for the army right after they were married. Klara raised her two nephews on her own.
Spouse
Pinchas Reif,
worked in quality control in Romania for the milk industry. In the US, he was a tool and die maker.
Children
Misha; Anita, and Susan
What do you think helped you to survive?
Believing in life.
What message would you like to leave for future generations?
Get an education and be the best that you can at whatever you do.
Interviewer:
Interview given by Susan Dines, daughter of Klara Reif
Interview date:
08/23/2022
