The 1920s till 1930s

Sometimes at the beginning of the 1920s, maybe earlier, Walter Dienstag met Paula Saft. In 1923 their son Joachim was born. By that time the family lived already in Charlottenburg, Knesebeckstraße 84.This is about 450 meters away from their last address in Goethestraße 12. The little family lived in the same house as the mother of Walter, Ida Dienstag. Both – Walter and Ida Dienstag – are listed in the Berlin Address Books of that time as so called “head of the household”. It is not sure whether the family has lived all together in one flat or in two different flats. The fact that both are named in the Address Books could be a hint, that the second  assumption is more likely.

In 1931 Walter, Paula and Joachim Dienstag moved to Goethestraße 12. According to the Berlin Address Books the new flat of family Dienstag was located in 4th floor of the front house. It was a flat with 4 and a half room and a kitchen.

Ida, Walter’s mother, died in Berlin on 30th of August 1933. She was buried in the Jewish Cemetery Weißensee like her husband Moritz before.

Shortly before the outbreak of the 2nd World War in August 1939 their 16-years-old son Joachim emigrated to Palestine. If this was his own decision or if it was the wish of his worried parents, we do not know. But it is sure, that this was a safe way to survive the holocaust. In Palestine he adopted the name Yehoyakim Doron ("Doron" means "gift" in Hebrew).