Jack & Ina Polak sparked a love affair while in the same concentration camp, exchanging love letters over the course of being held captive. They married after being liberated, and have stayed together over 60 years! * * * In the harsh camp conditions in Westerbork, Jack and Ina’s budding romance provided an escape. At night, they took walks along the main road in the camp, the “Boulevard de Misere,” and in between the barracks. “It was pitch dark, a lot of people walked there too, but we never saw who. We talked about the mundane things of the camp, and later on we talked about the future,” said Ina. When it was difficult to meet, they started exchanging letters. “I’m writing with a pencil stub. Darling, try to steal a pencil for me somewhere,” wrote Jack in one of his letters. The letters, which were published in the 2000 book “Steal a Pencil for Me,” chronicle Jack and Ina’s romance as well as life in Westerbork and Bergen-Belsen. Their story was turned into an award-winning 2007 documentary of the same name by Academy Award nominee Michèle Ohayon and an opera is in the making. Since 1951 the Polaks have been living in the US, where they have three children, five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. “We came on a boat and the moment I set foot on American soil I felt that I would like it here. I loved it from day one, and I was never homesick for Holland,” said Ina. In January, Jack and Ina Polak celebrated their 100th and 90th birthdays respectively
Posted on: Sat, 29 Mar 2014 17:33:18 +0000
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