Back in the 1990s, my mother, Yvonne Neufeldt Strebel, tasked me to help her write her personal history of growing up in eastern Germany during WWII. It was to be a Christmas present to her children, and at Thanksgiving she gave me dozens of pages of stories, handwritten on yellow legal pad paper. It was in no kind of order and bounced from one idea to the next. I dutifully typed it up, hoping that when I finished college I’d have time to organize it properly.
A couple of years later, I took a graduate summer class which required us to write a biography. I used that time to reorganize and add details to my mom’s stories (I got an A, by the way). When I was interviewing her for details, she said, “Someday, write all of this up properly. Share it with whomever. It will be important for people to remember.”
Fast forward a few decades. For years I’ve been wanting to write her story, and put together my father’s as well. Rudolf Strebel compiled an extensive and thorough life history, and scattered throughout it were stories from his childhood in Munich during WWII. I need to find and compile those. But the timing never felt right.
Earlier this spring (2021) I got the strong impression that NOW was the time to start writing up their stories, that NOW it was important to share what they experienced, because NOW we’d be going through very similar trials.
I spent this past summer researching my mom’s history, finding more details, discovering and uploading dozens photos we didn’t realize we had, and trying to uncover mysteries (many of which still remain mysteries).
TO READ YVONNE’S STORY, CLICK HERE: Emil and Yvonne Neufeldt History
TO READ RUDY’S STORY, CLICK HERE: Dora and Rudy Strebel History
Amazing miracles have occurred. For example, on a whim I contacted a librarian in my mom’s hometown in Poland and discovered, incredibly, that the woman lives in the house right next door to where my mother lived! Thanks to Google Translate, I found a wealth of information and photos from this woman who was as eager to help me as I was to find her.
I plan to upload segments of my parents’ stories to this site, adding, revising, and updating as I can. So far I’ve completed only Yvonne’s story. I hope to get to Rudy’s soon. But I also teach high school full time and have a family, so progress is in jumps and starts.
You are welcome to use and share this history for educational, family, and historical purposes. All copyrights remain with me. You may not profit from these personal family histories in any way.
You may also recommend suggestions, research ideas, and share additional stories with me. (See the “Contact Me” page to submit information.) I will be continually updating this site as new information is discovered, and I’m thrilled to take hints and suggestions of where to find details that elude us.
Rudy and Yvonne wanted their stories known, but only after they died. Since they’ve both been gone for a couple of years, it’s now time. Learn from their experiences, and discover what they now want all of us to understand. I think this knowledge will help save us in multiple ways.
~Trish Mercer
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Neufeldt-Strebel History 