Sara Eskenazi

Sara Eskenazi

This is a photograph of my paternal grandmother, Sara Eskenazi. I did not know her; she died three months before I was born. She was married to Abraham Eskenazi, a lawyer in Bjeljina. He was Sephardi. He observed the traditions. He was not Orthodox, but like the rest of the Jews from his generation, he observed the holidays, went to temple and socialized with others. It was not a ghetto, but all the Jews, especially from smaller places, socialized in the communities or at the holiday parties for Purim, Hanukah. At that time, there were about 150 Jews in Bjeljina.

After my grandfather's death my grandmother moved to Slavonski Brod. There they had an apartment. I do not know if it was theirs or if it was rented. I do not know what she lived off of, most likely she received her husband's pension. As far as I know she was a housewife. She was not employed and she lived there until her death in February 1929. I was born in June of that year but she had already died three months earlier.

My father, Israel Eskenazi, was one of six children. He worked as a traveling salesman. He met my mother, Vida Kabiljo, in Derventa.

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