Kaufhof past saved from obscurity

“These are our finest Stumbling Stones” was the compliment made by Hellmut Koch to the two Kaufhof caretakers.

A small delegation from the Stolpersteine initiative had gathered at the Ruschkewitz Stumbling Stones in front of Kaufhof in Schönbornstrasse to thank the two “carers”.

Benita Stolz, the coordinator of the WürzburgStolpersteine, awarded certificates of recognition to Alexander Heinen and Georg Wolz. The wording on the certificate: “The Stolpersteine in front of the former Ruschkewitz department store means that their memory will be preserved and creates a place which is a visible monument to these people”. The manager of the Kaufhofstore made sure that cleaning the Stumbling Stones was an integral part of keeping the outdoor area tidy.

In the middle of the pavement there are stones for three generations of Rushkewitz: The founders of the department store Siegmund and Mina Ruschkewitz died in a typhoid epidemic on an overcrowded refugee ship before the Crete coast in October 1940.  Both are buried in Heraklion.

Their son Ernst and his wife ended their lives in Nazi extermination camps together with their son, Jan, only 6 years old, the third generation.

Benita Stolz also thanked Pia Beckmann, mayor of Würzburg from 2006, who had agreed to sponsor one of the stones. “You have always espoused the Stolpersteine cause. That is why you were at the very first laying.” Pia Beckmann had come specially for this awarding ceremony.

Now there are 707 Stumbling Stones in different parts of the city. For more information:

From left to right:

Hellmut Koch, Pia Beckmann, Alexander Heinen, Georg Wolz, Benita Stolz.

Photo:  Michael Stolz