With the end of World War II and collapse of the Nazi regime, survivors of the Holocaust faced the daunting task of rebuilding their lives. With little in the way of financial resources and few, if any, surviving family members, most eventually emigrated from Europe to start their lives again.
Regina's journey brought her to the United States.
Laks family photo
Laks family photo, Poland, ca. 1925. Sitting, left to right: Pola Laks (Regina's mother) with baby Hania, grandmother Sara Tennenblum, Aunt Andzia Tennenblum. Standing, left to right: Aunt Lodzia Laks, Aunt Regina Tennenblum, Izak Laks (Regina's father), Aunt Rozia Tennenblum, and Aunt Dora Laks.
Item ViewRegina (Laks) Gelb and her mother at the Busko-Zdroj spa
Regina and her mother at the Busko-Zdroj spa (note that her mother used a cane and little Regina has been given a child's cane). Poland, early 1930s.
Item ViewRegina's parents
Regina's parents, Pola and Isak. Poland, ca. 1934.
Item ViewRegina with her sisters
Regina (left) with sisters Krysia and Hania. Poland, ca. 1938.
Item ViewPhoto taken a few weeks before World War II began
Photo taken a few weeks before World War II began. Regina is at the right of the front row. Kunow, Poland, July 28, 1939.
Item View1945 photograph of Regina (Laks) Gelb
Photograph of Regina (Renia) taken on June 2, 1945, in Lodz, Poland.
Item ViewRegina's sister Krysia
Regina's sister Krysia, Lodz, Poland, 1945.
Item View1945 photograph of Miles Lerman
Miles Lerman (who married Regina's sister Krysia), Lodz, Poland, 1945.
Item ViewRegina's sister Hania
Regina's sister Hania (later Anna Wilson). Berlin, Germany, 1946.
Item ViewRegina at the Dueppel displaced persons camp
Regina at the Dueppel displaced persons camp in Berlin-Schlachtensee. Germany, September 10, 1946.
Item ViewRegina at the Dueppel displaced persons camp
Regina (third from left) with friends while at the Dueppel displaced persons camp. Berlin, Germany, May 20, 1946.
Item ViewRegina (Laks) Gelb at a dance
Regina (top, left) with friends at a dance in Berlin. Germany, December 26, 1946.
Item ViewRegina with high school friends
Regina (left) with two friends at Thomas Jefferson High School, Brooklyn, New York, 1948.
Item ViewHebrew class at Jefferson High School, 1947
Dr. Horowitz's Hebrew class at Jefferson High School, Brooklyn, New York, 1947. (Regina is in top row, third from right, Professor Horowitz is in front row, third from right.)
Item ViewRegina upon her high school graduation
Regina upon graduation from Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn, New York, February 3, 1949.
Item ViewRegina (Laks) Gelb at college
Regina in her college dormitory room at Indiana University. Bloomington, Indiana, 1952.
Item ViewRegina (Laks) and Victor Gelb
Regina with Victor Gelb in Vineland, New Jersey, 1952.
Item ViewVictor Gelb
Regina met Victor Gelb, a young Jewish American, in 1950 in Brooklyn. Victor had been drafted into the Korean War. This photograph shows Victor (left) in September 1952.
With the end of World War II and collapse of the Nazi regime, survivors of the Holocaust faced the daunting task of rebuilding their lives. With little in the way of financial resources and few, if any, surviving family members, most eventually emigrated from Europe to start their lives again. Between 1945 and 1952, more than 80,000 Holocaust survivors immigrated to the United States. Regina was one of them.
Item ViewWedding portrait of Regina and Victor Gelb
Wedding photo of Regina and Victor. New York City, March 8, 1953.
Item ViewRegina and Victor with their two sons
Regina and Victor with their two sons, Harry (left) and Paul (right) at the World's Fair, New York, 1964.
Item ViewRegina with sons Harry and Paul
Regina with sons Harry and Paul in a swimming pool. August 1968.
Item ViewFamily celebration
Celebration after one of Regina's sons, Harry, received the Eagle Scout Award. February 16, 1973.
Item ViewRegina visits the birthplace of Frederick Chopin
Regina at Zelazowa Wola (near Warsaw), the birthplace of Frederick Chopin, during a visit to Poland in August 1980.
Item ViewRegina and Victor Gelb celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary
Regina and Victor celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. New York City, May 3, 2003.
Item ViewRegina Gelb shows her prewar family photographs
Regina Gelb displays an album of her prewar family photographs. 2004.
Item View2004 portrait of Regina (Laks) Gelb
Born as Regina Laks in 1929, she was raised in Starachowice, an industrial city in central Poland. Her mother, Pola Tennenblum, was an active member of the Zionist movement. Her father, Isaac Laks, was an engineer in the lumber industry. She had two older sisters.
Item ViewMementos of high school days
Regina Gelb holds buttons from her high school days.
Item ViewRegina Gelb's photographs and albums
Stack of Regina Gelb's photographs and albums. 2004.
Item View