Strangers answer plea to make a minyan at funeral of a Holocaust refugee
▶ DOZENS OF strangers responded to a social media appeal to ensure a minyan at the funeral of Holocaust refugee Bertha “Betty” Shane at Bushey Old Jewish Cemetery last Friday.
The 91-year-old died in a fire at her Hampstead maisonette and the appeal for mourners was made by the Association of Jewish Refugees, which Ms Shane was closely involved with in her final years.
Her niece, Dawn Rowland, was among the small number of family members at the funeral, telling the JC: “Betty was a character, a one-off, a poet and a woman who was still fiercely protective of her independence. She was not a shrinking violet; she wasn’t afraid of anybody.” Born in Antwerp on June 2, 1931, Ms Shane was the youngest and last survivor of seven children. The family had remained in Belgium until May 1940, when they fled with her aunt.
At her aunt’s pleading, her father, Moishe Shayngesicht, waited in Antwerp for her husband, Mr Shayngesicht’s brother.
Both were found by the Nazis and were sent to their deaths in Auschwitz.
In her later years, Ms Shane donated up to £500,000 to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in her father’s name.
Addressing mourners, Ms Rowland said: “Betty absolutely adored her father and had a very special bond with him. Throughout her life, she never stopped thinking and talking about how he used to cuddle and take care of her and how close that bond was. In many ways, he was the love of her life.”
Settling in London, Ms Shane was evacuated during the Blitz and placed with a couple who helped her learn English. English language, literature and poetry became her great love in life.
In 1942, she joined her mother in Market Harborough and later signed up with a Jewish organisation in London to learn shorthand and typing. At the age of 17, she was the family’s breadwinner. From 1956-61, she lived in Israel with her Sephardi husband. The marriage did not endure but her time there had a profound influence.
In the last decade of her life, she worked on a memoir about that period, collaborating with a friend of more than 40 years, Dudley Miles, who was among the mourners.
Ms Shane returned to the UK to gain
Betty was a one-off; she was not a shrinking violet, unafraid of anybody
a BA Honours degree from the University of London and teach O- and A-level English, where she “changed the lives of many”.
According to her niece: “After her retirement in 1996, many students still wrote to her and sent her Christmas greetings. It gave her such joy to read these letters and see how their lives had developed.”
One letter, from a former student called Rosemary, was read out at the funeral.
It said: “I just wanted you to know that I will always be grateful for the time Betty spent teaching my friends and me and we will remember her kindness and generosity for ever.”
Among the strangers who answered the appeal for mourners were Bushey Synagogue members Nigel Rothband and Arnie Harris.
Mr Rothband said that “every Jew deserves to be buried with a minyan and to have Kaddish said for them.
“Betty’s father was murdered at Auschwitz. If Hitler had succeeded, our way of life and our rituals would be extinct. I feel a responsibility to ensure, at every opportunity, they endure.” Attending the funeral had been “humbling and a privilege”.
For Mr Harris, “hearing of Betty’s tragic end pushed me into wanting to help. Her fascinating but sad story made me feel glad I was there.
“Also, learning that Betty was a poet gave me an added connection to her as I too am a poet.
“I wish I’d known Betty. I could have talked to her for hours.”
Another mourner was Esther, Ms Shane’s social worker for the last 18 months of her life.
“I am devastated,” she told the JC. “She always made me laugh. She was so independent but would usually be complaining about one thing or other, usually technology. I will never forget her and our time shared together.
“Last time I went to visit her, she told me a story from her childhood. In tears, she relayed a memory that upon leaving Antwerp as a child, she told her best friend: ‘I’ll play with you again when this is all over.’
“But that was the last time she ever saw her friend. Her losing her father and best friend, and others at that time in her life, remained a trauma for her for the rest of her life.”
AJR chief executive Michael Newman was “devastated to hear of Betty’s passing in such tragic circumstances. She was a lovely and cultured lady with a deep interest in poetry and literature.
“She was also determined to ensure that her father was remembered. It was our honour and privilege to support her with our holistic social welfare services and to pay our respects at her funeral.”