Names Not Numbers

Malka Schick

Borgo San Dalmazzo, Italy

In Hiding

1944

Malka Schick

Borgo San Dalmazzo, Italy

1944

Malka Schick (née Korn) was born in 1944 in Borgo San Dalmazzo, Italy. Her family had fled Belgium for France around 1941, constantly moving and hiding from the Gestapo. Her grandmother lost her only son and youngest daughter in an air raid. Seeking safety, the family found temporary refuge in Italian-protected France but anticipated the Nazi storming of Saint-Martin-Vésubie in 1943.

Fleeing with 1,000 other Jews, they followed Italian soldiers over the Alps into Italy, mistakenly believing they were safe. Upon arrival, they were met by Enzo Cavaglion, the Cuneo Jewish community, and Cuneo priests, but also faced the Fascist forces. Tragically, 350 Jews were tricked into coming out of hiding to live openly, and the majority were killed. Malka’s father and uncle hid with partisans in the mountains.

Life in the mountains meant enduring harsh conditions and starvation. Survivor accounts, including those from Walter Marx, painted a grim picture of the deportations, where people were transported in cattle cars. While Malka's mother, who was pregnant with her, was sheltered by Catholics (one named Anna), her father was shot and killed while coming down the mountain to meet his newborn daughter.

After the family moved to Demonte, Italy, they were supported by Christians and Protestants, such as Priest Raimond, who achieved "Righteous Gentile" status for risking their lives to hide and feed Jews. Malka’s paternal grandmother perished in Treblinka, and her great uncle was murdered in Auschwitz.

After the war, Malka and her grandmother returned to Belgium. Her mother and uncle were unable to speak of the Holocaust.

The trauma lingered, as exemplified by a Polish Jew who was shot upon returning to his hometown to reclaim his home. Malka later had her father's remains transferred from Italy and reburied in Israel. She returned to Italy to visit the tree near where her father was shot. Eventually, she became a teacher, dedicating her work to teaching children about the Holocaust.

Names Not Numbers

Malka Schick

Malka Schick

The End