Our heroes
On May 1, 1946, in Zhitomir, the wedding of Major Leonid Rosenberg and his second cousin Firochka took place at home.
All surviving members of the extended family were present - 14 people. The Nazis shot Leonid’s mother in 1941, and shot his little sister in her crib. The 14-year-old brother died in a partisan detachment. Fira’s father died in April 1944 in Poland, and her brother died. Two uncles did not return from the war.
And now, in our days, in 2024, Leonid Borisovich approaches his beloved and tells her something for a long time, then bends down and kisses her. And so every day for six years. Stroke. She lies there with her eyes wide open, she is 98 years old, and only G-d knows what she is thinking and what she is hearing. Leonid Borisovich will be 103 in September. I would like to note that special children were raised in the Rosenberg family, apparently, such happiness must be earned from the Almighty. This is an example to many children. They spend every day with their father, who is taken to the ocean shore to get some fresh air.
“We didn’t have long-livers in our family. My dad’s grandfather sailed to America in 1918. After 1945, all connections of the big family were lost. When I arrived in 1989, I found everyone. My dad’s and mom’s wonderful American cousins were very supportive at the initial stage, unfortunately, they are no longer with us,” said his son Alexander Rosenberg.
Leonid Borisovich's memory is amazing. Yesterday he talked about defending his diploma “Defense of the Rifle Corps on a Broad Front” at the Academy. Frunze in 1956. He remembers all the names of his friends at the front, a lot of events. Lieutenant Colonel Rosenberg entered the Academy the second time, when Stalin died. At the parade in Moscow, the Academy named after. Frunze always goes first. Rosenberg walked in the front row as a guide, for his bearing and awards were unmatched. He was the foreman of a course of 500 people. On May 9, 1955, at the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Victory, Rosenberg was deputy chief of the honor guard at the Victory Banner. And this was the second meeting with the Banner. The first occurred on May 4, 1945, when he ascended the Reichstag. In December 2023, Netflix released the 6-part documentary film “World War II: On the Front Lines.” It contains 2 episodes about Leonid Rosenberg, how he fought, how he took revenge for the death of his family, how he was one of the first to break through to Berlin.
“My father met the war on the Belarusian-Polish border on June 22 with the rank of lieutenant. The commander of the artillery battery Rosenberg, while on reconnaissance, was seriously wounded on the third day of the war. He was saved by his horse, which carried him from the battlefield.
But the most incredible thing at the front was the meeting with my father. Leonid was looking for his father throughout the war. They haven't seen each other since 1939. Boris Rosenberg fought in Finland (and in the 20s he was an adjutant to Bozhenko, the Shchorsovsky commander). And then the father found his father in the neighboring regiment. Two captains met. And then Leonid learned about the death of his mother, sister and brother.
I also often remember 9 years of service in Lugansk. At military parades, my father walked in front with the division banner. There was no more decorated officer in 20 regiments. But in Kyiv at the army headquarters there was an unambiguous reaction to the name Rosenberg; they did not give the rank of colonel,” said Alexander Rosenberg.
Once in New York, Leonid Borisovich Rosenberg plunged into veteran activities. Under his leadership, the American Association of Disabled Persons and Veterans of World War II was organized. 30 years ago there were 2800 people. Now there are only a few dozen left.
On May 9, veterans who are able will gather together to commemorate and reminisce, enjoy life, and talk about themselves. They need very little - a little attention, respect. They fought for their homeland. They saved the world from fascism. They, those who remained - Russians, Jews, Ukrainians, Uzbeks, Georgians, Americans, British, French - all fought against a common enemy for THEIR HOMELAND. AND WE WON. Let's bow to them.
It is a great honor for me to know personally and write about our veterans and board members of the Association of Disabled and Veterans of World War II. Anna Lagunova has been making films and recording memories of veterans and Holocaust survivors since school age, which can be viewed on YouTube.
Marina Lagunova
