Regina Halpern

Regina Halpern (née Perera) was born in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia (presently Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina) on February 20, 1939 to Moric and Ela Perera. She had one older brother and her family was orthodox and middle class. They spoke both German and Yugoslav at home. Her father attempted to get the family false papers so they could leave Yugoslavia. In order to escape persecution, the family claimed to be Muslim and travelled under false Muslim names with the assistance of a Muslim friend. They first joined the friend in a small village, then joined Regina’s aunt in the city of Moster (presently in Bosnia and Herzegovina).  

Regina, her mother, and sister left Yugoslavia in October of 1941 and headed to Italy with the hope of eventually ending up in Switzerland. Her father was arrested and taken to a concentration camp with his brothers and nephew. Regina, her mother, and brother arrived in Split, Croatia and took a ship to Italy. They then took a train to Montechiaro d’Asti. In Italy Regina learned Italian and went to school. They also acquired new false identification and lived under the names Ella, Giovanni, and Regina Ferraro. Because Regina and her family were considered civilian internees, they were given assistance from the Italian police, who warned them when Jewish arrests were starting in Montechiaro d’Asti. 

 After leaving Montechiaro d’Asti, Regina and her family went to Brusson and lived in the house of a local tailor until German and Fascist forces went through the town. They then moved to Challand-Saint-Anselme and were taken in by the priest. In Challand-Saint-Anselme Regina attended school run by nuns until the priest had to leave to hide from Fascists.  

In 1946 Regina learned she was Jewish and was placed in a Jewish orphanage in Torino while her mother searched for somewhere to live. Regina was in the orphanage for one year before returning to Yugoslavia in 1947.  

Upon returning to Yugoslavia, Regina, her mother, and brother found that their apartment had been taken over by the communist government. They lived in the basement of their own apartment and were required to clear the rubble from bombardments during the war. In 1948 Regina, her mother, and brother went to Israel. They were taken to a refugee camp in Hafia, where Regina went to school and learned Hebrew. In 1950 Regina was transferred to Nahariyyah to be with her brother.  

In 1952, Regina immigrated to Canada. She arrived by boat to Halifax, then took a train to Montreal. She worked as a secretary for a social worker and attended college at night. Regina met Nahum Halpern at school in 1958 and they got married in 1959. They bought a house in 1964 and had two daughters. Regina and Nahum frequently return to Israel to plant trees in memory of their family members that perished in the Holocaust.  

Regina Halpern currently lives in Côte St. Luc, and her full testimony is part of the Canadian Collection of Holocaust survivor testimonies. It is preserved in the USC Shoah Foundation’s Visual History Archive and accessible through the Ekstein Library. 

Regina Halpern

I remember being on that ship and we were packed like sardines… everybody was sick.