Matilde Dzivre and Toto Benies

This is a picture of Toto Benies with my older sister Matilde Dzivre, nee Saltiel Abravanel. The picture was taken in Thessaloniki but I don't know the exact location. This was before the war since, after the war, Toto never came back here. During the period that we lived in the ghetto, with my aunt Rachel and her boys, their friends started coming to our place every night. Aunt Rachel also had two daughters plus us three, we were five girls and the boys were, of course, thrilled to come over. All of my cousin Nadir's friends were coming, that is Toto Benies, Solon Molho, Davi Frances, and Senegal who was the funniest of all. Actually his name was Rousso but his nickname was Senegal. This is when we first met Toto. When we left for Athens Toto and his two sisters were there with us. One of them was later deported, and the other one married a Christian called Mikes, and her children still live here in Thessaloniki. Then my sisters were arrested and my father died. Toto was somewhere around watching over us in his own way. It was he who made all the arrangements with the partisans and we left together for Israel. Following the instructions given to Toto, we went on Good Friday, the one preceding Easter, in the evening, to a place where a lorry, sent by the resistance, was expected to pick us up and take us to Evoia and then to Israel. Everything was arranged by Toto in agreement with the partisans.

Photos from this interviewee