Research
“Some of my family members say that my grandfather spent time in the concentration camp.” Since a few years, such requests to the Federal Association have become more frequent. Descendants of Nazi victims have a deep personal interest in learning more about their relatives’ fate. We support survivors and relatives of survivors in searching for family members. This includes archive research and enquiries to institutions or agencies.
This is a free service for persons living in North-Rhine Westfalia. A fixed rate of €50 is charged for requests from outside North-Rhine Westfalia. This does not include incurring costs.
Contact:
Dr. Jost Rebentisch
0221 17 92 94 23
rebentisch@nsberatung.de
Track record: A Late Family Reunion
Heinz-Günther G. asked us for help in finding his biological father whom he never met. After years as a war prisoner and forced labourer, his Italian father immediately returned to Italy in 1945. Heinz-Günther G. and his mother Luise stayed behind in Germany. Then, Luise met her new husband with whom she had two more sons and Heinz-Günther G. became the unloved stepson, the “Italian”. Driven by the wish to meet his biological father, he took up the search himself that ended in a camp for “displaced persons” in Koblenz. This is where we took over – and successfully: After some research, we had a first track that led into the Italian province of Apulia. His father was found to live in the small town of Palagiano. For Heinz-Günther G., this closed a great biographical gap. Finally, he got to know his biological father and thus the other part of his family.