Page 25 - Kol Bogrei Habonim - October 19

THE HOSTELS

AN ARCHIVIST'S SURVEY AND PORTRAYAL OF HISTORICAL
SOURCES AND OTHER ARCHIVAL MATERIAL RELATING TO THE
HABONIM WARTIME AND POST WAR HOSTELS
LINDA MAROM SHOMER

1939:
1. Habonim is 10 years old.
2. Hitler controls part of Europe and is
threatening the rest.
3. The Jews of Europe are trapped and those in
Nazi controlled areas are persecuted – the
Holocaust, although not recognized as such in
1939, is becoming a reality.

1945:
Veidat Habonim surveyed the Movement at the
onset of WWII (in retrospect): The Hostel Choir with Asher Tremberg (Tarmon),
Choirmaster, rehearsing for the BBC recording of
“The first few months of the War were marked
Hanukah songs 6/12/1942
with general panic in the country, and in the
Zionist Movement as a whole. It was shown by the Kol Vatikei Habonim Vol I, No. 6, 9/1997:
evacuation, by the dispersion of forces and by the Avraham Gadiel, Editor and Rita Naveh
breakdown of all contacts and activities. All acknowledge Baruch ‘Tal’, the wartime Shaliach.
children at school were evacuated… Above all,
many of our best Madrichim were called up … Chozer No. 2 June 1940:
Everything depended on the strength of character Lily Beyrack wrote:
and resolution of our Chaverim. The first Blitz in “The Hostel shall be one of many similar
London, autumn 1940 and the subsequent air establishments, wherever it is possible to group
raids completely paralyzed work there.” Jewish children together … to make the Hostel a
centre for all the activities of Jewish children in
The Israeli Shaliach Baruch Rosental, A.K.A. the surrounding districts.”
Baruch Tal, arrived in the UK just before the War
erupted. The Habonim Batim, the Hostels, were Other Movement workers added comments at this
his brainchild. His ideas were approved and meeting of the Mercaz: Gershon Epstein, Olga
supported. Braham, Ossi Edelstein, Harold Behr, Moshe
In the “65 Years Habonim”, edition of Kol Vatikei Bialy, Baruch Rosental (Tal), Asher Pearlman and
Habonim, 1994, Asher Tarmon wrote: Zvi Goldstone (Even-Paz) contributed their ideas
“No attempt at recalling memories 50 years later for the Hostel project.
can really do justice to the story of the Wartime
Batim. It was probably the richest 4 years of In the first years of the War, Habonim
Habonim work ever accomplished. Baruch Tal communicated with its Vatiqim from its office in
ensured (not only) a strengthened and rejuvenated Southampton Row, London. In 1940 “Chozer”
post-war organization”. Numbers 1, 2 and 3 appeared. Chozer 2 described

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