Reet Lambur
7 years old. Reet remembers sitting on a bench on the boat and realizing that the chicken meat her mother had just handed out was her beloved chickens Tikka and Tibi. Both Reet and her sister Viiu refused to eat despite being very hungry.
Object
A dress that Reet’s mother made her when she was 3 years old.
7 years old. Reet remembers sitting on a bench on the boat and realizing that the chicken meat her mother had just handed out was her beloved chickens Tikka and Tibi. Both Reet and her sister Viiu refused to eat despite being very hungry.
Object
A dress that Reet’s mother made her when she was 3 years old.
Aino Mitt
17 years old. Aino remembers wearing her best suit. Everything else was packed in a suitcase that ended up getting lost and all she had left was a small sugar box with a face cloth.
Object
A photograph of Aino’s father and the Estonian president
Konstantin Päts in 1939.
17 years old. Aino remembers wearing her best suit. Everything else was packed in a suitcase that ended up getting lost and all she had left was a small sugar box with a face cloth.
Object
A photograph of Aino’s father and the Estonian president
Konstantin Päts in 1939.
Helgi Sooaru and Helju Salumets
13 and 19 years old. Helgi remembers looking at the trees and grass and thinking that she would never come back again. Helju remembers everything from the escape but doesn’t really want to because it hurts too much.
Object
Helju in a traditional costume in Pärnu a few years before they left.
13 and 19 years old. Helgi remembers looking at the trees and grass and thinking that she would never come back again. Helju remembers everything from the escape but doesn’t really want to because it hurts too much.
Object
Helju in a traditional costume in Pärnu a few years before they left.
Irina Schnickwald
5 years old. Irina remembers seeing her aunt running along the Pärnu riverbank, waving goodbye with a big towel.
Object
A photo album from when Irina was a baby.
5 years old. Irina remembers seeing her aunt running along the Pärnu riverbank, waving goodbye with a big towel.
Object
A photo album from when Irina was a baby.
Mai Aedma and Aino Lund
14 and 19 years old. Mai remembers being quite excited to get on the ship – she loved boats – but then felt terribly embarrassed as she discovered the roof of the washrooms had been blown off by a bomb and you had no privacy when going to the bathroom. Aino does not want to remember anything.
Object
A treasured photograph of their sister Vaike, who died of meningitis at 14, before the escape.
14 and 19 years old. Mai remembers being quite excited to get on the ship – she loved boats – but then felt terribly embarrassed as she discovered the roof of the washrooms had been blown off by a bomb and you had no privacy when going to the bathroom. Aino does not want to remember anything.
Object
A treasured photograph of their sister Vaike, who died of meningitis at 14, before the escape.
Roman Toi
28 years old. The thing he worried most about, was that they weren’t able to bring any food for his two year-old son.
Object
A photograph taken by Roman’s wife in 1947 in Geislingen, Germany of Roman and his young son Ants.
28 years old. The thing he worried most about, was that they weren’t able to bring any food for his two year-old son.
Object
A photograph taken by Roman’s wife in 1947 in Geislingen, Germany of Roman and his young son Ants.