THE WORLD CONVENTION IN NEW YORK On August 21-22, 1949, the sixth anniversary of the Bialystok ghetto’s liquidation, 277 delegates from /ands- manschaften in the United States, Canada and twelve other countries attended a convention called by the Bia- lystoker Center in New York. The conclave concluded with the decision to establish Kiryat Bialystok in Israel. Zvi Klementynowski, a leading activist in the Bia- lystoker community in Israel and a delegate to the con- vention in New York, stated: ‘‘A new Bialystok in the Jewish State will provide not only a roof over the heads of many Bialystoker immigrants but will serve as a rest- ing place for the souls of our martyrs, which wander all over the world seeking their final peace and are present among us in this auditorium.” In response to Mr. Klementynowski’s moving address and to a fervent appeal from David Sohn, founder of the convention, $100,000 was raised at a banquet for construction of Kiryat Bialystok in Israel. The resolution authorizing the plan was read at the conclusion of the conference, parts of which are repro- duced below: A New Bialystok in the State of Israel the surviving Bialystoker Jews, will never forget‏ :שש the beautiful, noble and proud lives that our martyred‏ brethren lost during the Holocaust. Their supreme sac-‏ rifice for the glory of God and the Jewish people will‏ forever remain sacred to us. Our children and grand-‏ children will be told the story of their valiant lives and‏ heroic deaths.‏ The convention resolves to establish Kiryat Bialy- stok in the Jewish State in tribute to Bialystoker Jewry. This new Bialystok will serve as an eternal, living mon- ument to our destroyed hometown and to the 60,000 Jews who perished in the liquidated ghetto — people who never abandoned hope during their long struggle for survival that the Jewish people would one day be liberated from tyranny. Kiryat Bialystok will contain two sections. In one area, several hundred homes will be constructed, sur- rounded by important communal, cultural and religious institutions. The second section will feature textile and other important factories. The streets, communal organizations and indus- tries will be named after Bialystoker Jewish personali- ties and generous benefactors. Various organizations representing Bialystok and vicinity can enshrine their names by making large donations. Proclaiming 8 Million-Dollar Fund-Raising Campaign Finalty realizing that this massive project will require large sums of money, the Bialystoker convention hereby 188 proclaims a campaign to raise 91 million as seed money. This drive shall begin at the present convention and end on August 21, 1951. An Appeal to Organizations Representing Towns Near Bialystok Recognizing that the Jewish citizens of communities near Bialystok shared the glory as well as the gruesome fate of the Bialystoker Jews, the convention calls upon organizations representing these towns to join us in transplanting Jewish Bialystok to Israeli soil. A Salute to the Jews Remaining in Bialystok The world convention of Bialystoker /Jandsmanschaften greets the Jews in Bialystok, who have stayed behind to rebuild their lives there. As long as Jews continue to live in Bialystok, their landsleit all over the world will not abandon them but will extend fraternal assistance. * * * The resolution excerpted above, adopted at a ses- sion of the Bialystoker convention held at the McAlpin Hotel in New York, generated a warm response from landsleit everywhere. Donations began pouring in from many lands for the Kiryat Bialystok project. On Monday, June 26, 1950, at a special luncheon, the contracts for building the first one hundred homes in Kiryat Bialystok were signed, which thrilled the par- ticipants. Subsequently a “brick campaign” was launched. The price of a brick was one dollar; each booklet contained ten coupons, or “bricks.”’ In particu- lar, the Bialystoker Ladies Auxiliary and affiliates were quite active in the brick campaign. This was a clever method of involving Bialystoker Jews from all eco- nomic strata in helping build Kiryat Bialystok, rather than depending on a few wealthy donors. A Kiryat Bia- lystok Foundation was formed, representing twenty-one Bialystoker organizations. David Lubin and David Hein Among those who were most responsible for estab- lishing Kiryat Bialystok were David Lubin and David Hein. Lubin was the President and Hein the Treasurer of the Kiryat Bialystok Foundation, which is based in the United States. Both spared no effort or generosity in seeing the project through to completion. After Lu- bin’s death several years ago, Hein succeeded him as president. He remains as committed to Kiryat 8121/- stok’s welfare as he was more than thirty years ago. Mr. Hein lives in Miami Beach. The Bialystoker Memorial Book