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Bonnie Toews twists true bits of history into hair-raising suspense in her WWII spy thriller, CHECKMATE TREASON Trapped in the boldest double cross of World War II, one woman is betrayed; the other is sacrificed. Home / Bio / Tribute / Backgrounder / Progress

MENNONITE FAMILY LINKS
Celebrating the Life of JACOB KLASSEN
(cousin of Wally Bernard Toews, my husband)
October 14, 1909 -- February 3, 2003

Jacob Klassen was born on October 14, 1909, in Osterwick, Ukraine, the son of Jacob and Sarah Klassen (née Toews-sister of Wally's father, Bernard Toews). The world was turbulent and changing quickly. When Jacob was still a young child, the Bolsheviks took power in Russia and released many prisoners, both political and criminal, who terrorized the peaceful and prosperous Mennonite villages in the Ukraine. In 1918, Jacob's father (Wally's uncle) was brutally murdered when Jacob was only nine years old. His childhood was shattered, but he endured. Upon the confession of his faith, he was baptized in 1927.

As a young man, Jacob fulfilled his military service duties by working in the coal mines in Vladivostok, the eastern most point of Russia on the Pacific coast. He returned in 1934 after enduring brutal hunger and suffering frostbite. He carried these scars for the rest of his life.

His life improved considerably when he met Katharina Klippenstein of Georgstal, Fürstenland. They were married on May 19, 1940. The young couple was blessed with a daughter, Eleanor, in 1941. She later died that year, just months before the German front overran Osterwick. The invasion turned their world upside down (for the Germans considered the Mennonite communities Aryan citizens of the German state, and thus according to their law, German forces had liberated the Mennonites from the yoke of Communist rule).

Grottkau,
Torturm a der Lowener Stasse,
Upper Silesia, Poland
In May 1942, their daughter, Lilly, was born. Then, in 1943, when the Germans were forced to retreat, they fled westward in fear of their lives from Russian reprisals. They briefly settled in a refugee camp in Upper Silesia. In 1944, the family settled in Poland, where Jacob worked on the railroad. In 1945, when the Russian front moved into Poland, the family fled once again to Rötha, south of Leipzig, where they managed to find a haven on a farming estate. Here, there daughter, Helene, was born. But again, this respite was short-lived. In 1946, Rötha, now under Communist control, was no longer safe, and they fled to Berlin, where they encountered other Mennonite refugees and the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). In the post-war ruins of Berlin, life was difficult. Here, they lost their daugher, Helene, to infant diseases.

In February 1947, the MCC arranged for them and 2,500 other Mennonite refugees to be smuggled through the Eastern zone to Bremerhaven to board the S.S. Volendam, which would take them to Paraguay. Their life was harsh as colonists in the jungle, but their greatest joy was the peace and freedom from fear. Soon after their arrival in 1947, Trude was born, and then in 1951, they were surprised with the birth of twins, Anneliese and Hannelore. Jacob was greatly involved in the founding of the Volendam colony and had the honor of being the Oberschultze (Mayor) from 1948 to 1951.

In 1956, the family emigrated to Canada and settled in the St. Catharines area. Although his life sounds hard, his children often delighted to hear tales and reminiscences of that time, for there was laughter amongst the tears and also enduring friendship and support. Life settled down in Canada, and when Victor Robert was born in 1960, the family was complete.

Jacob Klassen lived a life full of hardship and comfort, tears and laughter, trials and accomplishments. He will be forever remembered by his family: his wife of 63 years, Katharina (Tina); his children, Lilly and Arthur Heyder, Trude and John Becker, Anneliese Klassen, Hannelore and Eernest Price, Victor and Kelly Klassen; his grand children, Debbie and Steve Katzman, Steven and Greg Heyder, Emily Price, Nicole and Amanda Klassen; and his precious great-grandchildren, Ben and Sarah Katzman.

--written by Anneliese Klassen

"Peace
I leave with you,
my peace I give unto you:
not as the world giveth,
give I unto you.
Let not your heart
be troubled,
neither let it be afraid."
JOHN 14:27

Bonnie Toews 44 Fairway Drive Newcastle, Ontario L1B 1B3, Canada Tel: 905-697-7991 E-Mail bonnie.toews@rogers.com

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