List of Jews in Kelme

(Translator’s Note:
"is" is the masculine ending of some Lithuanian surnames as is "cius" "iene" is the ending for married women "aite" and also "ciute" are endings for unmarried women)
The following people listed below resided in Kelme:

1) Dr. Kaganskis (Physician) (Kaganski)

2) Dr. Suzalskis (Physician) (Suzalski)

3) Dr. Boneriene (Dentist) (Mrs. Boner)

4) Sapiras Brothers (Pronounced: Shapiras) (Sapir)
They had a fabric store in a brick building on the corner of 4 Komunaru Street.
Both were married: one to a Jewish physician, the other to a dentist.

5) Neimaniene (Mrs. Neiman).
Her family were the owners of the bus station. One of their daughters seems to have married into a sheet metal business (though I’m not quite sure if that’s what is meant), and that a granddaughter married someone named Butkus and now resides in Siauliai.
In Mrs. Neiman’s house there was a barber shop belonging to Jonas Karalaitis.

6) Mr. Imberas and Mrs. Imberiene (Mr. & Mrs. Imber)
Both were good tailors in Kelme. They lived in the center of Kelme on Petro Ruzgio Street.

7) Mr. Datas (Mr. Dat--he may have shortened his name.)
He had a stationery store. There we used to buy second-hand texts, ink, notebooks, paper to cover books, and copybooks. His store was on Kraziu Street, approximately where now a general sore is located.

8) Mr. Sechtinas (Schechtin / Pronounced: Shechtin)
His family had a very good bakery. For 5 cents one could get bagels baked
with eggs. They also baked a variety of buns and cookies.

9) Goldblatas family
They had a meat market. Their daughter Miriam was my classmate.

10) Bakstaite, Taska (Pronounced: Tashka )
{The name is unfamiliar and not very legible. ~ translator’s note.}
Her mother was either a dentist or a physician.

11) Mr. Safiras (Mr. Safir / Pronounced: Shafir)
He lived in our house and owned a grain mill in Naudvaris.

Jewish people also owned the electrical power station.

Mrs. Emilija Valanciene
April 8, 1988
Irene Zemaitaitis, Translator
Copyright LitvakSIG 1999

The Eye Witness Series Project seeks to document first person accounts of the Massacre of Lithuanian Jewry during the Shoah, the Holocaust period.