1948
After spending some time in the Merxhausen hospital and meeting many of the Jews and other people from KZ camps, Nonna fails to find any clues about her mother. She decides to leave that hospital and travel to Bad Hersfeld, Germany, where there was a camp for refugees and displaced persons.
Shortly after arriving at Bad Hersfeld, Nonna makes arrangements to attend a nursing school in Fulda, Germany.
1949
Having acquired much experience and knowledge of nursing while with the German hospital in Kassel, Germany, Nonna finishes her nursing course in only a few months and graduates with honors. She receives a scholarship to a pre-med program in Heidelberg and travels there to enroll. But she decides to apply for a visa to go to America.
After working as a nurse in Hanau’s general hospital for a short period, Nonna goes to work as a secretary at the IRO center in Hanau. She is employed by an English woman named Mrs. Hawksley, from London.
Mrs. Hawksley arranges for Nonna to apply for a visa to emigrate to the United States of America.
1950: Early Spring
The visa is approved, and Nonna goes through the procedures required of all immigrants to the United States of America. The sponsor is the Napoleon Avenue Baptist Church of New Orleans, Louisiana. The place of employment and a residence are provided by church members—the Guillory family.
1950: May 5
Nonna goes to Bremerhaven, Germany, and awaits her departure by ship.
1950: May 20
The USNS General W. G. Haan arrives in Bremerhaven, and Nonna goes aboard ship.
1950: June 6
The General Haan arrives in New Orleans at the Port of Embarkation, and Nonna leaves the ship, setting her feet on American soil.
Her father’s dream for so many years finally becomes a reality for Nonna, the lone survivor of the family.
Glossary of Names and Places
The following list includes names of Nonna’s family and friends up until 1950, as well as names of places that were part of her family history before, during, and after World War II.
Towns and villages are listed here with the country to which they belonged during that time, though borders have since changed in many places.
Feodosija and Yakov owned seven dachas in Russia and the Ukraine, which accounts for the different birthplaces of their children.
Babushka
Russian word for grandmother; Nonna’s name for Feodosija.
Buchenwald, Germany
Location of the porcelain factory where Nonna and Anna worked for three months.
Dunja
Russian woman who reported Anna for trying to save a Jewish baby on the train to Germany.
Flossenbürg, Germany
Location of the concentration camp where Anna died.
Ivanovich, Dimitry
Family friend who helped Feodosija and her children escape after Yakov was killed.
Kassel, Germany
Location of the carton factory where Anna and Nonna worked for six months.
Nonnatchka, Kitten Nonnatchka
Nonna’s nicknames.
Konstantinowka, Ukraine
Location of Feodosija’s Great House. The place where family gathered for holidays and special occasions. Same town as Santurinowka, later in history.
Lichtenau, Germany
Location of a labor camp where Anna and Nonna worked for three months.
Lisowskaja, Taissia
Nonna’s sister, born in 1940. Died at five days old.
Lisowsky, Johan Stanaislaus
Yevgeny’s father, Nonna’s paternal grandfather.
Lisowsky, Yevgeny Ivanovich
Nonna’s father, born in Warsaw, Poland.
Ljaschov, Ivan (Vanya)
Anna’s brother, a test pilot, killed in a plane crash in the Azov Sea.
Ljaschov, Yakov
Anna’s father, Nonna’s maternal grandfather. A Russian Cossack who was killed by the Bolsheviks during the Revolution. Born in Poltava, Russia (near Odesa).
Ljaschov, Leonid (Ljonya)
Anna’s brother, born in Dnipropetrovs’k, Russia (now Ukraine).
Ljaschov, Zhenya
Youngest of Anna’s brothers, born in Konstantinowka, Russia.Served in the underground during the beginning of Hitler’s invasion.
Ljaschova, Anna Yakovlevna
Nonna’s mother, born in Novorossisk, Russia.
Ljaschova, Antonja (Tonja)
Anna’s sister, born in Sevastopol, Russia (now Ukraine).
Ljaschova, Feodosija Nikolayevna
Anna’s mother, Nonna’s maternal grandmother. Born near Odesa, Russia (now Ukraine).
Ljaschova, Xenja
Anna’s sister, born in Tashkent, which was then under Russian protection (now Uzbekistan).
Marienkrankenhaus
German hospital run by Catholic nuns, at which Nonna and Anna worked.
Nachichevan, Russia
City near Rostov-on-Don, location of the university Nonna occasionally visited.
Nathan
Jewish boy who saved Nonna’s life en route to Germany.
Nicholas II
Last Tsar of Russia. Nicholas; his wife, Alexandra; and their five children were killed by the Bolsheviks in 1917. Nonna’s family has a birthday card sent to Yakov from Nicholas, postmarked January 1913.
Petrovich
Keeper of the Great House estate.
Ravensbrück, Germany
First concentration camp to which Anna was sent alone.
Rostov-on-Don, Russia
City where Nonna and her family lived and where Anna participated in the theater.
St. Petersburg, Russia
City where Anatoly was sent for his safety and education. Anna and Yevgeny were educated at the University of St. Petersburg.
Solzhenitsyna, Mrs. Taissia Shcherbak
Mother of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Shared Anna’s love of music.
Taganrog, Russia
City near the Black Sea; Nonna’s and Anatoly’s birthplace.
USNS General W. G. Haan
Ship that transported Nonna from Germany to the port of New Orleans in America, May 1950.
About the Author
Nonna included this “About the Author” page in her transcript.
MOST IMPORTANT IN MY LIFE
My husband, Henry; my children; and my grandchildren
THINGS I LOVE
To listen to music, read books, and write.
To play chess—I learned to play at a very early age, five or six years old.
To paint—I used to paint when I was younger but have not done so in a long while.
Classical music, opera, the symphony, concerts, ballet, stage plays, the works of good artists (paintings), and literature—I love to read good books.
To meet new people and make lots of friends.
All my grandchildren—Catie, Cristen, Zachary, Benjamin, and Kara.
To have my immediate family around the table and laugh a lot, remembering some of the funny and even silly things.
To laugh a lot—my two sons and my daughter and Henry have a great sense of humor. So do I!
MY FAVORITE COMPOSERS
Peter Tchaikovsky (especially his 1812 Overture), Beethoven, Schumann, Mozart, Bach, Chopin, and others—too many to name.
MY FAVORITE OPERA SINGERS
Luciano Pavarotti (tenor) and, of course, my mother, as I remember her singing when I was a child.
MY FAVORITE BALLET DANCER
Mischa (Mikhail) Baryshnikov, especially in Swan Lake.
MY FAVORITE PIANIST
Vladimir (Volodya) Horowitz—his last concert was held in Moscow, Russia, in 1986.
MY FAVORITE ARTISTS
Rembrandt and Repic, and the works of most artists.
MY FAVORITE WRITERS AND POETS
Leo Tolstoy
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
Aleksandr Pushkin (the greatest poet I know)
Anton Chekov
>
Charles Dickens
I know much about Anton Chekov—he was born and lived on the same street on which I was born, in Taganrog on Azov. I know much about Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn—when I was five years old, my mother and I spent the night at his mother’s home in Rostov-on-Don. His mother and my mother gave concerts together (piano and violin). At the age of six I danced (ballet) the “Tatar Dance” at one of his mother’s parties. They lived near the “Great Theater” in Nachichevan, which was near Rostov. My memories of those times are so vivid, and I visited the university where he attended very often.
* * *
Horowitz’s last concert • Nonna refers to Horowitz’s last concert in Russia. His final concert took place in Hamburg, Germany, in 1987.
* * *
Acknowledgments
When we decided to publish the story of Nonna Lisowskaja Bannister, we didn’t realize how our lives—and the way we see the world—would be changed. To know this incredible woman through handwritten notes and photos from her darkest days and then see her survive, meet a remarkable man, marry, and have children can only be possible through her faith in God. We will never forget.
I would particularly like to thank my husband, Dr. Matt Tomlin, who has offered encouragement, support, and love throughout this journey. Special thanks go to my son, Kevin Tomlin, and his wife, Peggy; my daughter, Cindy Tomlin Coulston and her husband, Jimmy; and our six grandchildren.
We feel fortunate in knowing Morris Abernathy, photographer of Union University, Jackson, Tennessee, who offered professional guidance in reproducing the many photos and documents. Special recognition goes to Kathy Bannister, Nonna’s daughter-in-law, who helped organize and scan these fragile artifacts.
Thanks to our agent, Greg Johnson, for believing in this book and for offering advice as we pursued this project. We are grateful to Tyndale and the editorial team for their professional advice and willingness to publish this text.
A final thanks to Henry Bannister, who trusted me to know this untold story of his beloved wife, and to his son, John. And to my wonderful friend and coauthor, Denise George, who has made working on this book a joyful experience.
Carolyn R. Tomlin
October 2008
My gratitude goes to all those people whose work, friendship, prayer, and support make a book possible, including my agent, Greg Johnson; Tyndale’s wonderful staff; my husband, Dr. Timothy George; my son, Christian George; my daughter, Alyce George; my daughter-in-law, Rebecca Pounds George; and the faculty and staff of Beeson Divinity School, Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama. My special gratitude goes to Henry Bannister and his lovely family for allowing me the unique opportunity of getting to know Nonna through her diaries and photos. And to my good friend and coauthor, Carolyn Tomlin, who invited me into this remarkable project, my greatest thanks!
Denise George
October 2008
About the Editors
Denise George is the author of twenty-four books. She teaches “The Writing Minister” at Beeson Divinity School, Samford University. She is married to Dr. Timothy George. They have two adult children, Christian and Alyce, and one daughter-in-law, Rebecca. They reside in Birmingham, Alabama. You may contact Denise via her Web site, www.authordenisegeorge.com or at her e-mail address, [email protected].
Carolyn Tomlin, M.Ed., is a frequent speaker on teaching others to write and publish. She is the author of eight books, writes monthly columns for several magazines and newspapers, and has published more than three thousand articles. Carolyn and her husband, Dr. Matt Tomlin, have two adult children, Cindy and Kevin, and six grandchildren. They reside in Jackson, Tennessee. You may contact Carolyn at her Web site, www.carolyntomlin.com, or via e-mail at [email protected].
The Secret Holocaust Diaries: The Untold Story of Nonna Bannister Page 22