Pier 21 Person Search – Maja Monic

Last places seen: Warsaw, Poland and Versailles, France
Last known destination: Canada

The Scotiabank Family History Centre needs the public’s help reuniting childhood friends. Irene and Maja, Holocaust survivors from the Warsaw ghetto, were separated in France in 1947 when Irene’s family left the country and Maja’s family came to Canada.

In May 2013 the Scotiabank Family History Centre received the following email from Irene’s daughter, Paula. If you have any information that can help reunite Irene and Maja please email Reference Services Manager Cara MacDonald at reference@pier21.ca.

Dear Canadian Museum of Immigration, Pier21,

My name is Paula Rinaldi and my mother is a Holocaust Survivor from the Warsaw Ghetto, her name is Irene Dab. She was born in 1935 and she survived thanks to her father and many non-Jewish families who took care of her during the war. She used to have a very close friend in Warsaw, Maja Monic who also survived the war and met together again in France in 1947, sharing 6th grade at school in Versailles. That was the last time they saw each other. At that moment Maja’s mother met a Canadian man who she got married with and were planning to go to Canada. My mother left France before them, so she doesn’t know exactly when did Maja finally go to Canada.

My mother is now 77 years old, lives in Argentina since 1948, has just published a book telling her story, and is trying to find Maja.

Do you think you can help us? Do you have any Maja Monic registered in Canada? Her mother’s name was Rozyczka (married in Poland to Monic), but we don’t know her single last name nor the second marriage’s. She must have entered Canada during 1948-1949-1950.

Here is a picture of Maja taken during 1947, Maja also kept one of my mother’s so they wouldn’t forget each other.

We will be very grateful if you can help us. Thanks a lot. Kind regards,

Paula Rinaldi
Argentina