Isi’s letters to the Polish Jewish Refugee Fund are notable for their jocularity, informality and humour, which was unusual in the correspondence between refugee children and the refugee agencies that supervised them. In particular, his letters to Sidney Gerrard (Documents 2, 3, 4), who briefly headed the Fund’s Children’s Department, are revealing of Isi’s character, his agency in getting requests for pocket money fulfilled, and of his obvious pleasure in corresponding with someone with whom he could form a bond of friendship. This is particular evident in Document 4, in which Isi jokes with Sidney about himself (“I…am climbing the road to ‘fame’ and honour”) and Sidney’s call-up to the army (“I sincerely hope that the government will reconsider this important matter & spare the H.G. the loss of its most courageous warrior!!”). Without parents to share with whom to share his experiences, Isi, like many Kinder, turned to carers whom they perceived as sympathetic, understanding and supportive. His letters to Moise Gorowitz (Documents 5, 6,7), which all contain requests of some kind, are somewhat more formal and even obsequious in tone (Document 7). Nevertheless, he did not hesitate to ask if the Polish boys could be treated the same as the German and Austrian refugees (Document 7), and to persist in his quest for properly fitting clothing (Documents 6 and 7).

 

Isi’s national identity and his desire to re-emigrate are also reflected in the documents. He enlisted Sidney Gerrard’s  help to get the necessary documents to prove his Polish nationality to the Tribunal Board (Documents 2 and 3) and implied to Sidney that even though born in Germany, his Polish identity set him  apart from the German and Austrian boys at the ORT (Document 2). His Certificate of Identity, clearly showing Polish nationality is included in the collection (Document 1).

 

Isi tried very hard to get permission to re-emigrate  to Mexico to join relatives there, and the reply he received from Bloomsbury House (Document 5) laid out the many reasons why this would be impossible in 1941, demonstrating the difficulties Kinder encountered when trying to re-emigrate in wartime.

 

Also included in this collection is a Refugee Children’s Movement home visit report from 1943 (Document 9).  Kinder were supposed to be visited at least twice a year, and such reports filed by representatives of the Refugee Children’s Movement. There is ample evidence that not every child received these visits as scheduled, especially in the early war years, but it does appear as if the visits became more regular in the later war years and these reports provide a useful reference point for the kinds of welfare checks the organisation had put in place.