Historical Author Cynthia A. Sandor will be displaying her mother’s original Hitler Youth journal from WWII.

Cynthia A. Sandor, will be showcasing her book, "Through Innocent Eyes – The Chosen Girls of the Hitler Youth," based upon her mother’s secret journal from the time she was in the League of German Girls (BDM). Spanning fifty-eight years from 1931 to 1989 and set against the epic panorama of Austria and Poland during WWII, "Through Innocent Eyes” is a sweeping story of family values, love, and building camaraderie  that illuminates an intimate part of history seldom seen: through the eyes of an innocent child in the Hitler Youth. After the war, Gertrude meets PFC Robert Sandor from the 87^th Infantry Division. Robert speaks a broken German and Gertrude barley understands English. Gertrude’s siblings translate every word, even Robert’s marriage proposal.  Robert and Gertrude marry in the bombed out Dom in Linz and move to America.

About “Through Innocent Eyes – The Chosen Girls of the Hitler Youth”

In 1938, ten-year-old Austrian born Gertrude begins her indoctrination into the Hitler Youth. By age 13, the Reich’s Ministry of Science, Education, and Culture select Gertrude to participate in an 8-month long elite educational program called Landjahr Lager (Country Service Year Camp). The curriculum focuses on building the girls' full individual potential to becoming a productive member of society. In her journal, Gertrude records her vivid memories recounting her experiences during Country Service Year Camp in Seidorf, Niederschlesien with her roommates, Ellie, Nelly, Steffi, and Maria. Thoughtful, moving, and entertaining, Gertrude's personal accounts will dispel many misconceptions and skewed perspectives of the League of German Girls.

 About the Author

Working at John Denver’s music publishing company Cynthia was the Manager of Copyrights, Licensing, and Administration. She moved to Florida and received her B.A. from Eckerd College. In 2001, she survived a horrific motorcycle accident, which propelled her to produce the Lady Rider TV Show, The Business Forum, and Travels with Cindy, on Pinellas County Public Access Television. She is an accomplished world traveler visiting over twenty countries. Her articles have appeared in Guitar for the Practicing Musician, Biker Ally magazine, the Tampa Bay New Times and the Greenwich Times. An article about her parents' journey appears in the 50th Anniversary Maiden Voyage Edition – S.S. United States – Fastest Ship in the World by Frank Braynard and Robert Hudson Westover.

Ms. Sandor will have her BDM display set up at the D-Day Conneaut 2023 event located in the Conneaut Township Park on beautiful Lake Erie. Books available include:

Through Innocent Eyes – the Chosen Girls of the Hitler Youth

In den Bann gezogen – the German edition of Through Innocent Eyes

BDM History Collection – The Young Girls Achievement Badge

Girls in Service: The Official Handbook of the Bund Deutscher Mädel

Reflections – The Story of Dorothy Swanson: Wife of an 82^nd Airborne Paratrooper

For more information, please visit:  https://bdmhistory.com/

Free tickets for D-Day Conneaut 2023 - https://www.ddayohio.us/

Mariazell -

Mariazell is an Austrian city in the southeastern state of Styria. Well known for being a hub of winter sports and a pilgrimage destination, it is located 143 kilometres (89 miles) north of Graz. It is picturesquely situated in the valley of the Salza, amid the north Styrian Alps.

It is a site of pilgrimage for Catholics from Austria and neighboring countries. The object of veneration is an image of the Virgin Mary reputed to work miracles, carved in lime-tree wood. This was brought to the place in 1157, and is now enshrined in a chapel adorned with objects of silver and other costly materials. The large church of which the chapel forms part was erected in 1644 as an expansion of a smaller church built by Louis I, King of Hungary, after a victory over the Ottoman Empire in 1363.

On many occasions, I've visited Mariazell with my mother, Gertrude, who was in the BDM. Her story can be found HERE.

The following photos are from Jugend im Reich, Adolf Schmidt - 1942

Drei Hufeisen pg. 129

 Hotel Lauffenstein - page 113

Mariazell Basilica - page 115

KLV Instructor in Mariazell teaching a young girl how to wash and rinse the towel.

Steirmark Austria - Styria is a mountainous, forested state in southern Austria, known for its wine, spas and castles. Graz, the riverside state capital, blends Renaissance and baroque architecture with modern designs such as Murinsel, an artificial island made of glass and steel, and the alienlike Kunsthaus, a contemporary art museum. A funicular runs up Schlossberg, a hill topped by the Uhrturm, a 16th-century clock tower. Gemeinde Alpe - page 100 from Jungend in Reich, Adolf Schmidt - page 100

Zum grünen kranz - pages 24, 25, 

Pages 98 - 99

Page 104

Page 107, 138

Altenmarkt – Blaue Traube – Yspertal – Austria

 Yspertal is a town in the district of Melk in the Austrian state of Lower Austria.

The Altenmarkt im Yspertal parish church is in Altenmarkt in the market town of Yspertal in the district of Melk in Lower Austria. The Roman Catholic parish church dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene belongs to the deanery of Maria Taferl in the diocese of St. Pölten. The church and the cemetery are under monument protection.

Source: Blaue Traube - Altenmarkt - Jugend im Reich - Schmidt, Adolf - 1942 pg 90 + 102 

 

Evacuations of children in Germany during World War II

The evacuation of children in Germany during the World War II was designed to save children from the risks associated with the aerial bombing of cities, by moving them to areas thought to be less at risk. The German term used for this was Kinderlandverschickung (KLV), a short form of Verschickung der Kinder auf das Land ("relocation of children to the countryside").

KLV Maria Taferl, Aufenthaltsort in der K L V, Osterreich, 1938 – 1945 - The Kinder-Land-Verschickung (KLV) Lager system cared for German children and tried to keep them out of harms way during WWII.

Maria Taferl is an Austrian market municipality of 872 people in the District of Melk and the most important pilgrimage site in all of Lower Austria. After Mariazell, Maria Taferl is the most important pilgrimage destination in all of Austria. Maria Taferl is located in the Nibelungengau in Lower Austria on a bank over the Danube and 47.48% of the municipality is forest. The Maria Taferl Market takes place on the so-called "Taferlberg" (Taferl Mountain), and the remaining districts are found in the hilly surrounding area. To the south, the basilica sits on top of the hill and is widely visible throughout the town. First photo source:

Source: Jugend in Reich – Adolf Schmidt book 1942 – Maria Taferl, Austria, pg 80