Personal Testimonials:
On June 12, 2013, Sandy Mermeistein described her life as a first generation American from parents who survived the Holocaust. Her story included connections to the St. Louis shipping story and goes as such:
Her aunt had secured landing passes and passports for the family. They were set to go until the aunt's mother (Mermeistein's grandmother) feared she would not see her remaining German family again. They backed out of the trip.
A second attempt to Cuba proved that the false landing papers were still a problem. The ship was rejected from Cuba but was scheduled for a second stop in New York. The family was able to get off the ship and spent four months at Ellis Island. When the war started they were released as hostile aliens and permitted into the country, provided they registered where they were staying with the police. The family was that of her father, who became successful in founding the Florida Holocaust Museum.
She had a second relative who had a less positive experience. Her grandmother's sister wished to move the family to America. Her husband refused, but finally agreed to send them ahead just during the war period. He stayed behind. He secured passage on the St. Louis and was one of the Jews who was rejected from Cuba and the U.S. He died in the Holocaust. (His passage and death are documented; last name Seligman).
For other testimonials from the St. Louis, please go to: http://www/ushmm.org/lcmedia/viewer/wlc/testimony.php?Refld=GWS0048F
