Dr. Marc Jarzebowski

Genealogy – History – Life

Professional Family Research

since 2004

Witness Project

May the voices of those, who lived through the times, do never fall silent. With the change of generations, there is a threat of a loss of memory – both on the familial-personal and on the socio-political level. The recording and the cinematic processing of eye witness accounts in videos represent an important contribution to the culture of commemoration.

On this page you are invited to share the childhood memories of Emil Schmidt (born 1932) and Gunther Ostwald (born 1937) from wartime days. And if you would like to preserve your memories or those of your relatives for posterity as videos in a similar form – let me know!

You can find all my videos on my YouTube channel . Clicking on one of the screenshots below will redirect you to YouTube and to the corresponding clip.

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 1: He didn’t like Uniforms

Emil Schmidt Memories 1

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 2: Jungvolk

Emil Schmidt Memories 2

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 3: Inquisitiveness and Worries

Emil Schmidt Memories 3

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 4: The saddest Day

Emil Schmidt Memories 4

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 5: The Incendiary

Emil Schmidt Memories 5

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 6: Evacuation

Emil Schmidt Memories 6

Emil Schmidt’s Memories 7: The War Ends

Emil Schmidt Memories 7

Gunther Ostwald relates: 1. Prologue. The Chicken

Gunther Ostwald relates 1

Gunther Ostwald relates: 2. Wartime Idyll

Gunther Ostwald relates 2

Gunther Ostwald relates: 3. The Double-Sided Picture

Gunther Ostwald relates 3

Gunther Ostwald relates: 4. Encirclement

Gunther Ostwald relates 4

Gunther Ostwald relates: 5. Departure

Gunther Ostwald relates 5

Gunther Ostwald relates: 6. Buried in the Rubble

Gunther Ostwald relates 6

Gunther Ostwald relates: 7. Arrival

Gunther Ostwald relates 7

Gunther Ostwald relates: 8. Epilogue Return

Gunther Ostwald relates 8