PERL VAYSENBERG-AKSELROD

PERL VAYSENBERG-AKSELROD (November 1, 1914-September 2, 2008)

            She was born in Zhelekhov (Żelichów), Poland, the daughter of Y. M. Vaysenberg (Weissenberg) and the wife of Zelik Akselrod.  From 1920 she was in Warsaw.  In late 1939 she escaped to Byelorussia.  After the war she returned to Poland, then German, Switzerland, and six years in Israel.  In 1954 she moved to Canada.  She debuted in print in 1938 in both Haynt (Today) and Folks-tsaytung (People’s newspaper) in Warsaw.  In 1940 she worked for Byalistoker shtern (Bialystok star).  She wrote articles, memoirs, stories, and poems in: Nayvelt (New world), Lebns-fragn (Life issues), Goldene keyt (Golden chain), and Dos vort (The word)—in Tel Aviv; Tsukunft (Future), Svive (Environs), and Morgn-frayhayt (Morning freedom)—in New York; Ilustrirte literarishe bleter (Illustrated literary leaves)—in Buenos Aires; Folks-shtime (Voice of the people) in Warsaw; and Keneder odler (Canadian eagle) in Montreal.  He edited Dos naye yidishe vort (The new Yiddish word) in Winnepeg.  Her long story “Di vakh fun zibn” (The guard of seven) was translated into Hebrew as “Mishmar hashiva,” Shevatim (Tribes) (Tel Aviv, 1952/1953), pp. 177-235.  She was the author of: Y. m. vaysenberg, zayn lebn un shafn, 1878-1938 (Y. M. Weissenberg, his life and work, 1878-1938) (Montreal, 1986), 433 pp.  She died in Montreal.

Source: Y. Rapoport, in Heymish (Tel Aviv) (May 15, 1960).

Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), cols. 244-45.