Bernard Mintz

This is my uncle, Bernard Mintz, my father’s brother.

We spelled our name the same way, with a 'tz,' until the 1930s.

This photo was taken immediately after his studies in Vienna, probably taken in Silesia, because that's where he did his first internship, he only came to Lodz later.

My grandparents: Adolf and Roza Mintz lived in Warsaw. Their home was in a very elegant place, on Smolna Street, opposite what is now the drugstore at the corner of Smolna and Nowy Swiat, on the third floor.

That's where the two eldest sons of my grandparents were born: Bernard Mintz, who later became a doctor, and my father - Izydor Jozef.

My father was born in 1877, on 22nd March, and his brother was born some two or three years earlier.

Later my grandparents moved, and the youngest son, Zygmunt was born at their new place, at number 40 Marszalkowska Street, right at Zbawiciela Square. In 1913 my grandparents moved to Cracow and lived at number 2 Czarneckiego Street.

My father's older brother, Bernard, completed his medical studies in Vienna around 1908-9.

There he married Schwester, I mean the sister superior whose name was Maria (people called her Mitzi). She was a native of Vienna, and although there are many Catholics in Vienna, she was a protestant.

Until 1926 they lived in Lodz, at 6 Plac Wolnosci [Freedom Square]. They were childless, but since they loved children, they always had Christmas parties at their house and all the children of my mother's sisters would come visit them.

Bernard and Mitzi could afford this, they were quite wealthy. Bernard was the head of a ward in a hospital, and he also worked in a doctors' co-operative called Sanitas.

Since we were also doing quite well, the gifts he gave us were rather modest. But my mother's sisters were not so well off, so for them he would prepare more meaningful presents.

It was all very nicely arranged. Bernard had never been baptized and his wife was a protestant.

When the war broke out, Bernard Minc had already retired, he left the city and he died in 1939, as early as September I think, in Mszana Dolna.

His wife had the body brought back, and had him buried in the Rakowiecki cemetery in Cracow.