Otto Wolf and Felicitas Garda papers

Copyright Holder: Ms. Felicitas Garda The Otto Wolf and Felicitas Garda papers consist primarily of four volumes describing the lives and activities of the Wolf family from the time they entered hiding in 1942 to escape the Holocaust in Czechoslovakia until their liberation in 1945. The first three volumes are written by Otto Wolf. Otto’s entries describe meals, weather conditions, the state of the family’s shelter, prayer, interactions with rescuers, dramatic developments, and occasional news of the war. After Otto’s arrest, Felicitas took it upon herself to carry on the diary entries. Her entries imitate Otto’s reporting style and describe his arrest, the family’s concerns about his fate, and their liberation, and she lists and thanks the people who helped them survive in hiding. The collection also includes five photographs of Otto, Kurt, Felicitas, Berthold, and Růžena Wolf as well as a memorial photograph containing a composite image of men and boys who died during the Holocaust, including Otto Wolf. Otto Wolf (1927‐1945) was born in Mohelnice, Czechoslovakia to Berthold and Růžena Wolf. He was raised in Olomouc with his brother Kurt (1915‐1943) and sister Felicitas (Lici, Licka, 1920‐2006). At the outbreak of war, the Wolf family relocated to Tršice. When the Wolf family was ordered to report for deportation in the summer of 1942, they decided to hide in the woods surrounding Olomouc with the help of Jaroslav Zdařil (Slávek) and later Alois Pluhař. When these relationships deteriorated, the family moved into the attic of the home of their former maid, Maria Zbořilová, for about a year, but when her husband became too afraid of discovery, they relocated to the attic of the Ohera family in nearby Zákřov. Otto was arrested and killed in April 1945 following a raid by Soviet collaborators directed by the Gestapo to eliminate Czech partisans. His father, mother, and sister were liberated the following month and learned that his brother had been killed in battle in Sokolovo in March 1943, fighting under General Ludvik Svoboda. Felicitas married Otto Grätzer, and the family changed its name to Garda after immigrating to the United States in 1968.