This photograph was taken in Brno, likely at the end of the 1990s. My grandson, Jan Gottvald (at right), and my nephew, that is, my sister's son, Gideon Holan (at left), had themselves photographed in Jan's room. On the wall in the background you can see an Israeli flag that Gideon had brought my grandson from Israel.
Gideon Holan is the son of my sister Marketa and her second husband Ervin Holan, who emigrated to Israel in 1948, and settled in a small town named Herzlia, close to Tel Aviv.
My daughter married a man of non-Jewish origin. They had a civil wedding at the Brno City Hall. I sewed her wedding dress myself. Actually, I wished she had found a Jewish partner but after the war there was not such a large young Jewish community in Brno anymore. I am very satisfied with my son-in-law. Even his family got to like Marketa. They have two sons - Jan was born in 1980 and Jiri in 1984. Neither of my grandsons was circumcised. Jan studies medicine at Masaryk University and this year [2004], Jiri was accepted to this university as well; he will study dentistry. After turning 18, Jan became a member of the Brno Jewish Community. His room is full of Jewish artifacts. He is very proud of his Jewish origin.
