The Great Escaper - a Profile of Judy B.

Judy, a longtime IJC member, is of Hungarian origin, born in Budapest in 1944. She managed, with the help of others, to escape from Hungary twice. And it was her mother who was instrumental in saving her on both occasions.

Her mother heard that an actress Maria Lazar, who happened to be married to a Jew, allowed women with children to live with her in her spacious villa in Buda. They were looked after by the Red Cross for a while but left when they were warned that the Russians were coming. Fearing for their lives, they left and went by tram to Pest. The tram they were on was blown up just after they got off.

The Chain Bridge linking Buda and Pest blown up during WW II

Upon arrival, Judy and her mother were sent to the ghetto in the Jewish quarter. However, she snuck out with her baby after removing the yellow star from her clothes. They returned to their apartment to find that all their belongings, except the furniture, had been looted. Her mother cut up her gold necklace in exchange for food. She survived by sewing for the needy and obtained some food from her work.

The Hungarian Revolution

They settled in Budapest but when Judy was 12 and her little sister 9, they had to escape once again due to the Hungarian uprising in 1956. Her mother was told to bring some valuables and money as their former neighbours were in touch with a smuggler who would help them escape. The smugglers lived close to the Austro-Hungarian border. It was dusk when they left and they had to walk through fields and forests. The group passed by the guard house where they could hear the singing of the drunken guards who were letting off flares to see anyone who was trying to escape.

Upon finally arriving at the border, they were told to go straight on where there was a house run by the Red Cross. A wrong turn and they would end up in Hungary. Fortunately they found the house.

The next day the mayor of the Austrian town, Klingenbach, came to check on the refugees. Judy’s mother, who spoke German, asked him if he could lend her the bus fare to take them to Vienna. He gave her the money which she eventually returned. At this point, the HIAS (Hebrew Immigrants Aid Society) was contacted. After feeding and housing them in a small hotel, they were advised to go to the US Embassy to apply for political asylum. They were then taken to a refugee camp and told to find some empty beds. But because they were Jewish, no Hungarian wanted to share any space with them. Another incident occurred when Judy and her sister went outside to play and a Hungarian man approached them brandishing a knife demanding to know where their father was. As this happened in front of a police station, the man was arrested.

1956 Hungarian Refugees in Camp Kilmer, New Jersey

One inmate was so disgusted by the behaviour of the Hungarians he raised hell which led to the Jews being taken to a US army base and then on to freedom in America. They were taken to New York but could not settle in the city as there were too many people wanting to stay there. Upon a recommendation of a friend, they decided to settle in Boston. Judy and her sister soon settled down and attended a special school for immigrants where they learnt English.

A few years later, Judy who wanted to travel, got a job with the US government and through them was sent to Belgium in 1971 to work for NATO at the US mission. So after all these adventures, Judy met and got married to Sam and is now the proud mother of two daughters and two grandsons. All’s well that end’s well for someone who lived through one of the most turbulent periods of Jewish history.

By Ann Englander