Rivka Basman Ben-Haim

Rivka Basman Ben-Haim was 14 when the Nazis took over her town, and 18 when WWII ended. She began composing Yiddish poems in the Vilna ghetto, and the words themselves gave her the strength to live on. As a young bride, she helped her husband gather the stateless Jews whom no country would accept once WWII was over. The two helped send these unwanted, 'displaced persons' to what was then Palestine, in the effort known as the 'brikha'--the escape. Years later, when the poet and her husband were...See more

Rivka Basman Ben-Haim was 14 when the Nazis took over her town, and 18 when WWII ended. She began composing Yiddish poems in the Vilna ghetto, and the words themselves gave her the strength to live on. As a young bride, she helped her husband gather the stateless Jews whom no country would accept once WWII was over. The two helped send these unwanted, 'displaced persons' to what was then Palestine, in the effort known as the 'brikha'--the escape. Years later, when the poet and her husband were in what was then the Soviet Union, she met with Yiddish writers clandestinely, and did what she could for them. She is one of the unsung heroes of our time, and at 90 years, she is still writing poetry. She has won every award known to the world of Yiddish writers. See less