Erinnerungszeichen für Regina und Martin Hallerz Stele

In a city steeped in history like Munich, echoes of the past linger on every corner. Here, before the Erinnerungszeichen für Regina und Martin Hallerz Stele, we confront a story of love, loss, and resilience during one of history’s darkest chapters. The Erinnerungszeichen für Regina und Martin Hallerz Stele, erected on November 24, 2019, stands as a poignant reminder of the lives tragically cut short by the Nazi regime. It’s a memorial dedicated to Regina and Martin Hallerz, whose lives were deeply intertwined with this very spot, Anglerstrasse 9. Regina, born Riwka Malka Anker in Tarnów, Poland on March 29, 1879, and Martin, also from Tarnów and born on December 9, 1877, built a life together in Munich. They married in Berlin in 1905 and moved to Munich, where they started a painting and decorating business in 1906. This city became their home, where they raised their four children: Hermann, Frida, Albert, and Berta. The family lived at Landsbergerstrasse 14 before moving to this address, Anglerstrasse 9, in 1920. The Hallerz family’s story, like so many others, took a devastating turn with the rise of the Nazis. In 1938, during the “Polenaktion,” Regina, Martin, and their sons were arrested and slated for deportation to Poland. They were denied entry at the border and returned to Munich, a brief reprieve from the escalating persecution. Their business, once a source of pride and livelihood, was forcibly closed under Nazi decree, leaving the family to rely on their dwindling savings. The persecution continued. Martin was arrested again in 1939 and imprisoned in the Buchenwald concentration camp. Regina desperately sought emigration papers for her and Martin but to no avail. She was forced to leave Anglerstrasse 9 in 1940, finding shelter first in the Jewish Community’s overnight accommodation and then in the Milbertshofen “Jewish settlement”, a forced labor camp and a grim staging point for the deportations. The Erinnerungszeichen für Regina und Martin Hallerz Stele marks the final chapter of their story. Regina was deported to Kaunas, Lithuania, on November 20, 1941, and murdered just five days later. Martin was killed at the Bernburg killing site on March 11, 1942. Their children, through a combination of marriage to non-Jewish spouses and timely escapes, all managed to survive the war. The Erinnerungszeichen für Regina und Martin Hallerz Stele serves not only as a memorial to this one family, but also as a symbol of the countless lives destroyed by Nazi brutality. It’s a reminder that even in the midst of darkness, stories of love and resilience can endure. It begs us to remember, to learn, and to strive for a future free from such horrors.