KUEHN - BARTEL

August 5, 1995

Aunt Emmy told me and my mother the story about how her Step mother Johana
Bartel died. Johana did not like aunt Emmy since she was the step child.
Wanda aunt Emmy's mother died and Johana then married David Bartel. So
both sisters were married to the same man but at different times. Aunt
Emmy was then left with two step parents since her father had died first.

There was a great deal of termoil in Germany at the time. The family was
living in what is today Poland and they were German farmers. When the
area
was occupied by Poland the family was given Russian servants. David
Bartel
recieved a woman and the man across the street a russian man. We'll to
say
the least one thing led to another and David Bartel caught the Russian
woman
and man together in bed and beat the man up.

When the Russians reoccuppied that part of Poland again David Bartel was
taken away from his home and never seen from again. The Russians wanted
their land back again. The family was seperated by the Russians.

Emmy and Johana worked on a farm in East Germany. Johana died in
an attic of an old man's farm house. The man helped Emmy take Johana back
to
a small cemetery and they buried her together. The old man made a coffin
for
Johana with boards he had around his home.

Johana's dying wish was to be brought back together with her daughter from
a
previous marriage. And for aunt Emmy not to leave her to die alone. Emmy
stayed by her until she died.

Emmy and Wanda fled East Germany shortly after Johana's death they escaped
through the black market. They road on a train as far as it would take
them
to the boarder and the got off and ran across to the West.

Emmy remembered her sister crying and being afraid because the farmer she
worked for was very mean and she was afriad to leave. Emmy told her she
would not leave without her and for her to come with her.

They both escaped to the West sucessfully. Aunt Emmy to this day always
says she lives in paradise and to you should always be thankful to live
here in America.