Dr. Irving Kohn - NNN 2023

FAMILY: Father: Asher Selig, Mother: Fruma. Siblings:  Avrahm Moshe, Esther Malka, Shmuel Aharon, Yosef Chaim Elazar

STORY OF SURVIVAL: The Kohns were forced to leave Kosice, Czechoslovakia and move the family to their father’s country of origin in Satoralijhely, Hungary. Irving’s father, Asher Selig, was harassed by the Hungarian Nylas (Hungarian Arrow Cross Nazis).  He left home and stayed in Budapest most of the time, running and hiding back and forth from Budapest to see his family when possible. He made contacts in Budapest and became friends with a gentile young man named Gaiza, who helped the family acquire things they needed and find hiding. When the war started, a ghetto was set up in Ujhel for all the surrounding small villages. Gaiza came in and took Irving and his brother out of the ghetto and brought them to their parents who were both in Budapest at that time. Irving’s father bribed German soldiers to hide Jews in ammunition trucks and transport them to safety. 3 trucks on the first transport successfully escaped, but the second transport was arrested by the Nazis. Irving, his mother and younger brother were sent to a ghetto, and his father was sent to a camp. Adolph Eichmann was at the camp facilitating deportations, and Irving’s father was ordered onto a cattle car train headed to Auschwitz. Instead, he jumped out of the moving train car, and escaped. Gaiza helped find different hiding places for the family. Gaiza’s antisemitic Nazi father didn’t realize Gaiza was hiding a Jew in his own home. Irving was then sent to live with Gaiza’s cousin until the war ended; he was seven years old. After the war, Irving’s uncle arranged for the family to come to Chicago. Irving was twelve years old. One year later, he celebrated his Bar Mitzvah in Congregation Anshe Motele. Irving went to the Chicago Jewish Academy and then went to college and medical school.  He became a doctor specializing in obstetrics.

MARIAGE: Met his wife, Yudeet, in Israel, when he was visiting his brother. Married in 1967. Father to six children: 3 boys and 3 girls.

IN IRVING’S WORDS

“My favorite food my mother made was just about everything. The challahs were all shabbosdik prepared at home and the cholent was taken to the bakery and covered up.”

“They came to our house a couple of times a day searching for him (Father) and they just walked in like it was their own house. One time he was caught, and he was put in jail.”