Renée was born in Vienna in May 1929. Although her father sadly died before she was two years old, she remembers having a happy childhood. However, in March 1938, Renée’s mother also died, which was very traumatic for her. She went to live with her father’s brother Salomon and his wife Sofie, with whom they were very close and her two brothers.
Renée remembers the rise of antisemitism in Austria and her brother Norbert being attacked in the street. She was forced to leave her school to enrol in a Jewish school. She witnessed the horror of Kristallnacht and frightening visits from the Nazi SS soldiers.
In December 1938, when she was nine years old, Renée and her family had a frightening and long journey by train and boat to England.
Renée settled in London and when she was 17, went to the Katinka School of dress designing and, after a year there, to a job in an haute couture shop in Mayfair.
Renée met her future husband, Jeffrey while he was studying in London. They married in 1950 and decided to relocate. In 1951, they settled in north Manchester and had two children and were happy until tragically, Jeffrey died when he was just 28 years old.
Renée experienced further heartache throughout her life but continued to work in the catering trade to support her family. At one time, she lived in Zurich, Switzerland but she eventually returned to Manchester and has more than 100 grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.
