Holocaust Remembrance
My name is Mina Rubinstein. I was born Mina Zimmer in Zboriv, a small town in Galicia, which is now part of the Ukraine. I had a large family as my father Fischl Zimmer was one of nine children.
Most of my town’s residents were Jewish. Many of the young people in my town were active in Zionist youth groups. I belonged to one of the Zionist youth groups, and this group prepared me to emigrate to Israel around 1932.
When I emigrated to Israel I hoped that my family would eventually be able to join me. While living in Israel, I received many letters from my family that remained in Zbroriv until 1941. In 1941 the letters stopped.
Zbroriv was occupied by the Germans on July 4, 1941. In 1941, Zboriv was the site of a massacre conducted by the Germans of the Einsatzgruppen. The Einsatzgruppen were the SS paramilitary death squads of Nazi Germany that were responsible for mass killings, primarily by shooting during World War II.
After the war, each year I attended the annual memorial service for murdered residents of Zboriv, which was held in the Martyr’s Forest outside of Jerusalem, which was planted in memory of the victims of the Holocaust including my family.
Mina (Zimmer) Rubinstein
"...in 1941 the letters stopped.
Fischel Zimmer (seated center) and family. Mina is the taller of the two people standing in the back
Mina attended the annual memorial service for the murdered residents of Zboriv, held in the Martyr’s Forest outside of Jerusalem, which was planted in memory of victims of the Holocaust.
