Kehilat Middlesbrough Newsletter No 15 October 2002

My mother was Rachel Greenberg, who was born in Middlesbrough in 1910, married Bernard Green in 1939 and settled in Manchester.

I’ve enjoyed looking at the website and have found some wonderful photos of the Smollan/Greenberg family there, including one of the Greenberg brothers and sisters, with me as a baby at the front! I have a lot of photos at home, and will shortly be scanning some in and sending them to the website. I have one of Bertha Greenberg’s ‘Rainbow Wedding’ when the 7 sisters wore one colour of the rainbow each. A pity that the photo is in black and white!

My cousin Rita Sadlik mentioned in her letter that she is sorry her father Sam Greenberg is no longer around to ‘fill in the gaps’. I feel exactly the same. I remember my mother (Sam’s sister) telling me many stories when I was little, about the Bharier family, the Hush family, the sands at Redcar (her father going there regularly to swim), the big family dining table, Reverend Wulwick, and no doubt many others, and I have now forgotten the details, and wish she were here now to see this website and remind me of her stories.

My mother stayed in touch with Esther Niman for a long while, as Esther and her husband Sam Hyman also came to live in Manchester, and I saw a lot of them when I was a child.

Some time I hope to visit Middlesbrough, perhaps when my Uncle Terry is over on a visit from Israel, all being well, I may join him and visit the various parts of the city he remembers, and also the cemetery and my grandfather’s grave.

I was born in Manchester in 1947, went to university in Nottingham, got marriedn, and after a year in Scotland, we lived in Haifa for three years (our children Aliza and Danny were born there). We then returned to England, lived in Staffordshire for a while, and have lived in Sheffield now for over 25 years. Our married daughter lives in Glasgow, and we became grandparents last September. Our son lives in London.

I would love to hear from anyone who remembers the Greenberg family, particularly my mother Rae (although they would probably be in their 90s by now!)

My grandma Fanny (Smollen) Greenberg went to Manchester eventually, lived on her own for a while in Didsbury, and when she was no longer able to live alone, she lived with various members of the family, spending the last years of her life with my Mum and Dad in Fallowfield, and she passed away in our house after a short illness. The brothers and sisters who could manage to travel from various parts came to our little house, and I remember that time very well.

It was quite a coincidence when Michelle Michaels, now Mendelovitch, (daughter of Louis & Jenny Smollan) came to live in Sheffield for a while a few years ago. It took some time before we realised we were related! Michelle has now moved away, but we still keep in touch.

The remaining first cousins I have in England are Barry and Geoffrey (in Manchester), sons of Dora Greenberg and Hymie Bernstein, Ruth Hopkins in Exeter (daughter of Blanche Greenberg and Kim Marwood) and Roger Marwood (son of Blanche & Kim) in London. I think that’s all – all the rest are in Israel, Canada, Australia, America.

The remaining Greenberg Aunts and Uncles are Uncle Terry and Auntie Sadie, both in Israel, and I hope they continue in good health for a good long time to come.

My father also came from a family of 11 children, so I have quite a rich assembly of Aunts, Uncles and cousins.

I was recently speaking to Jeffrey Cohen, who lived and worked as a kidney specialist in Sheffield. His mother I think was from the Silverston? family, and her first husband, I think, was from the Intract family. Jeffrey Cohen’s mother and father passed away in the last few years, and he has now gone to live in Israel, settling in Raanana, and trying to learn Ivrit! Dennis Intract used to live in Sheffield, but unfortunately he died at a fairly young age not long after we came to live here.

Best wishes to all the Middlesbrough website readers!