Book donation tells tale of Jews in wartime Shanghai

In February 2019, Wick embarked on a tour of Asia with his wife, daughter and son-in-law, with Shanghai as one of their destinations. It was the first time in more than 70 years that he had seen the city that provided him with shelter as a child.

He visited the museum, searching for some reference to his existence during that time. Examining the memorial wall, which contains more than 13,000 Jewish names, he was excited to see the name he had used during his stay in the city: Wick Wickelholz. His family had used the surname Wickelholz during WWII.

The visit inspired him to tell Chen about his book collection, with the hope that they might be permanently stored in Shanghai, a city that was dubbed "the Noah's Ark of the Orient" during WWII.

"I believe a lot of students and researchers in the universities all over China will be interested in the Jews' situation in those years, so those books related to Jewish history and the Holocaust will be useful for them," Wick told Xinhua in a phone interview.

He said the donation was also an act of gratitude, thanking the people of Shanghai for saving his whole family and other Jewish people during the war.

"I told Mr. Wick about our plan to expand the museum, but I didn't expect that he would voluntarily donate to us the books he had collected over many years," Chen said.

It was a tough job for Wick to compile a complete list of over 8,000 books. Also, it was no easy feat to transport the books to Shanghai.

With the help of the Shanghai Public Diplomacy Association and Shanghai Customs, the books were temporarily stored in a bonded warehouse after their arrival. The booklist was then compiled in Shanghai with the assistance of volunteers.

In order to compensate Wick for his sadness at being parted from his collection, Chen asked his friends in London to present him with three gifts: a donation certificate, a bunch of flowers and a Chinese tea set.

Chen said that, as the museum expands, the process of accepting and making donations had fulfilled everyone's wishes, both donors and recipients.

"This is inseparable from the enthusiasm and generosity of the Jewish refugees and their descendants during World War II," he said.

"It also benefits from the cooperation of all parties. We all have the same goal, which is to preserve the collective wartime memory, stand up against wars and champion peace," he added.