Toyvia Wolfe Pieniek and family. Toyvia is sitting in the center of the photo. Sitting to his right is his son David Eleazer. Behind David Eleazer is Toyvia's eldest son, Jacob. Zalman Leib is standing on the far right.
Toyvia Wolfe and Shayna (Charna) Pieniek
Toyvia Wolfe Pieniek (b. Golub-Dobrzyn 1864, d. Golub-Dobrzyn 1933)
Shayna Charna Pieniek (b. Golub-Dobrzyn 1865, d. Golub-Dobrzyn 1908)
Toyvia Wolfe was the second child of David Eleazer and Rana Temera.
"Toyvia Wolfe lived in Dobrzyn all during his lifetime. All of the other children migrated, some to America, the "land of milk and honey". Toyvia married Shainsha. Shainsha was a good wife. She helped her husband operate his business.
Toyvia was an importer and exporter of foods fish and other items. He exported seafood to all parts of the world. From Germany he imported and then marketed fishnets. To Denmark he exported fine grades of cheese and butter. From the Russian north country he imported all kinds of furs and then exported them. His mobile lucrative and major activity was the raising and selling of crabs and lobsters. He bought lakes and placed young fish in them. When they were nurtured and grown, he would export them.
He was a wealthy man. He stood out like a "diamond in the rough" among his town folks and peers. His success was most rewarding. He was able to take care of his widowed mother; he also helped his brothers and sisters survive. He possessed the only telephone in the village. He passed away in the 1930s.
The migration of the Pieniek family children began before WW1. It was then that the doors of this country opened to accept immigrants from Central Europe under certain quotas. It was an opportunity for many Europeans to flee the religious and social hardships that existed. Toyvia and Shainsha Pieniek had five children, namely: Jacob, David, Esther, Zalman Leib and Rachel.
"The Pieniek Roots" by David Joshua Pieniek and David Leon Skop, written in 1982.
David Eleazer and Yita (Szmiga) Pieniek
David Eleazer Pieniek (b. Golub-Dobrzyn 1888, d. Warsaw Ghetto 1942)
Yita Szmiga Pieniek (b. Golub-Dobrzyn 1892, d. Warsaw Ghetto 1942)
David Eleazer Pieniek
Yita Pieniek
"David, the second child, also remained at home with his parents in Dobrzyn. He was married to Yita Shmiga and they raised five children. Our narrator (David Pieniek,1909-1985) writes about them as follows: 'David derived his given name from his grandfather as I did, and I can only say that he and his wife Yita Shmiga were to me like angels. G-d sent down these wonderful people and forgot to call them back. Their goodness to me shall live forever. They both performed selfless service to me when I visited them after I fled Danzig, following my release as a prisoner after my being arrested on the night of the Crystal Night Massacre. It was this couple who also held some of my Uncle Hersh Leib's children to return to the United States. They made trips to the U.S. consulate for the good of those children. Many times when my father, Meyer Pieniek, needed help, it was these fine souls who helped him. These are only small fragments I can tell of the goodness of their lives. Their lives were mainly centered around upbringing of their own children. They had strived to give their children opportunities for a good education. I remember well that in their early days they encouraged their daughter, Hanya, to enter a dental school in Strassbourg, France. As late as 1938 they helped their son Daniel to enroll in a medical school in Sorbonne, France. Daniel went on to become an outstanding doctor and today owns and operates his own hospital in France. I want this generation to know that our family made every effort to educate their children. The five children of David and Yita Shmiga are Hanya, Shmulek, Freedka, Daniel, and Beena."
"The Pieniek Roots" by David Joshua Pieniek and David Leon Skop, written in 1982.
David Eleazer was the second child of Toyvia Wolfe and Shayna, named after his grandfather. They were last heard from in the postcard sent in 1941. David and Yita were murdered in the Holocaust in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1942 or 1943.
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- Uri Ladell
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Toyvia Wolfe Pieniek
David Eleazer Pieniek
Yita Pieniek
Jacob Pieniek
Morris and Esther Bina (Pieniek) Sonabend
Morris Sonabend (b. Lubicz, Poland 1890, d. Bulwayo, 1946)
Esther Pieniek Sonabend (1889 b. Golub-Dobrzyn, d. Capetown, 1968)
1910 marriage
? Dresden, Germany
? Paris, France
1936 Bulwayo, Southern Rhodesia
1942 Capetown, South Africa
Esther Bina Pieniek was the third child of Toyvia Wolfe and Shayna Pieniek.
Morris Sonabend
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Esther Bina Sonabend
"Esther married Morris Sonabend or Moisha as he was usually called, and he was the son of the Neshaver Rabbi of an Orthodox Jewish home. He came from a prominent family. He had several brothers and sisters; one brother, Dr. Ezekiel Sonabend, was a leader of an ardent Zionist group which in 1952 decided to adopt and settle the ancient area known as Eshkalon. Dr. Sonabend, an architect and city planner, planned and designed the specific character of the modern city of Escalon and became its first mayor. Morris and Esther Sonabend moved to Dresden, Germany, where they manufactured cardboard boxes and cigarettes. About 1930 they moved from Dresden to Paris, France, where their oldest married daughter, Mary, married Dr. Henty Topol. Around 1936 Morris and Esther moved to South Africa (Southern Rhodesia) to a city called Bulawayo where they operated a luggage store. In 1942 Morris died and Esther liquidated her store and moved to Capetown, South Africa, where her daughter Lottie married Irving Neumann."
"The Pieniek Roots" by David Joshua Pieniek and David Leon Skop, written in 1982.
Esther (Pieniek) Sonabend
Zalman Leib (Solly) and Dora Pieniek
Zalman Leib (Solly) Pieniek (b. Golub-Dobrzyn 1902, d. Minsk Ghetto c. 1942)
Dora Pieniek (b. ?, d. 1942?)
Zalman Leib (nicknamed Solly) Pieniek was the fourth child of Toyvia Wolfe and Shayna Pieniek.
"Zalman Leib Pieniek, the fourth child of Toyvia and Shainsha Pieniek, was married to Dora. They had twin daughters but their names are not known. I visit this family in 1938. I also remember that when I lived in Bolivia that I received a letter from Zalman Leib and although I had answered it, I never received an answer back. I presume this family vanished during the war".
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"The Pieniek Roots" by David Joshua Pieniek and David Leon Skop, written in 1982.
Indeed, Zalman Leib and his wife Dora (maiden name unknown) had twin daughters, Ruth and Naomi, and a third daughter, Myriam. Myriam married ? Blajberg from Lodz. Hanya Pieniek submitted Daf Ed testimonies that the entire family was killed in the Minsk Ghetto. (The dates of birth are noted in the Daf Ed testimonies, '1930 or 1931". It is possible Hanya mistakenly remembered Ruth and Myriam as twin sisters. Naomi Pieniek is mentioned in a list of murdered Jews from Yizkor books. Another source records that the daughters were killed in Treblinka.
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- Uri Ladell
Mordecai and Ruchkia (Rachel) (Pieniek) Lipka
Mordechai Lipka
Ruchkia (Rachel) Pieniek Lipka (b. Golub-Dobrzyn 1908, d. c. 1942)
"Ruchchia, or Rachel, the fifth and youngest child of Toyvia and Shainsha Pieniek, married Mordecai Lipka. He had one son named after his grandfather, his name was Toyvia Lipka. "Ruchchia and Mordecai Lipka lived in an elegant house in Dobrzyn. I visited with them in 1938 and when I entered their home I was impressed with all the comfort they enjoyed. But, despite their well-being, they were not considerate enough of any of the family who was need of help. "Mr. Lipka," writes our narrator, "was a dry goods merchant. I advised them to sell their store and make an effort to escape, but they did not listen to me. I later heard from them once when I lived in Bolivia. It is presumed they were victims and perished in the Holocaust.
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"The Pieniek Roots" by David Joshua Pieniek and David Leon Skop, written in 1982.
