Haya Lea Detinkos's elder sister Hava Blikh

This is my older sister, Hava.

In 1932, my older sister, Hava, joined a kibbutz in Poland and lived there for one year. There she met Yakov Blikh, who became her boyfriend, and who helped her to emigrate from Poland to Israel where she intended to study medicine by providing the certificates for her departure and some money.

Yakov and Hava were eventually married. My parents sent her off to Israel with a plush blanket and a beautiful coat. I have a photo of her from that time. She was very beautiful and all of the available men in Rovno were in love with her.

Yakov and Hava had two children, both sons. Hava died in 1960 at the age of 44 for reasons I do not know although she did have high blood pressure. When I was in Israel, I visited my sister's grave.

Hava became a nurse and she was very respected-even loved-at the hospital where she worked. Although I did not know it for a long time, she died at work.

One of Hava's sons died young but her other son, Avraam Blikh, still lives in Israel. In 1988, when Natan, the elder son of my brother, Aron, came to visit me from Germany (he now lives in Israel too), he concealed from me that Hava was dead.