HIGHLAND BEACH — George Flaum Banet, 85, died on May 20 at home, as he wanted.
A Holocaust survivor, Mr. Banet had, with the help of Ruth and Norman Rales Jewish Family Services, his wife, his family and his own powerful inner fortitude, fought cancer, heart disease and kidney failure to stay alive for much longer than anticipated. He fought to live so he could fulfill an act he believed was a moral obligation.
Those who knew Mr. Banet thought only a miracle could make it happen. Then the miracle happened.
What was keeping Mr. Banet alive, his wife, Marlene Roberts, said, was the yellow Star of David that said Juif (Jew) that the Nazis made Jews wear.
Mr. Banet and his mother, Thèrése Flaum, were arrested in Paris before dawn in the Vel D’Hiv roundup. He escaped, but his mother perished in Auschwitz.
To him, the Juif symbolized his love for his mother and her memory. He did not want to die before he passed this symbol on to someone in the next generation. But circumstances had left him not knowing who that person would be.
Then an email arrived from Robert’s son saying that in school George’s grandson, Gavriel Yaakov Bernstein, and other students had been asked to write about someone in their family whom they respected. Gavriel chose Poppa George.
The essays became part of a bar mitzvah book. Gavriel’s essay, in part, reads:
“George Banet, my step-grandfather, was born and raised in Paris, France. Life was good until Hitler and his army invaded France. George and his mother were shoved into the street before dawn by an army of soldiers. An officer grabbed both George’s mother and George, but the officer lost his grip on George. George’s mother shouted a warning to George to run to a Christian family they knew well, despite the fact that George didn’t want to run and leave his mother behind. He knew his life depended on it, though.
“When George arrived at the Christian family’s house, they agreed to let him stay with them and wanted to help him as much as possible. He started attending a Catholic school and became acclimated to the Christian lifestyle. George loved the family he was staying with, but not as much as he loved his mother. He missed her very much and had a feeling she was no longer alive. He remained with the family until the end of the war.
“After the war, George moved to Philadelphia, married and later got divorced. After his divorce, he moved to Highland Beach and married my grandmother. In Florida, they live in a nice apartment that overlooks the beach. Unfortunately, he started having liver issues and began seeing his doctor frequently.
“Whenever I go to Florida to visit him, he shows me some of his memorabilia from the war when he was young. He still has the Jewish star he was forced to wear …”
After reading Gavriel’s essay, Mr. Banet, a photographer who made his living in the finance industry, knew he had found the person to carry on the memory of his mother and the Holocaust. He went to the picture framer he used for his photography and designed the layout to place the Star and the photograph of his mother and him wearing it into a frame. He mailed the gift to Gavriel and it arrived in time for Gavriel’s bar mitvah.
When Gavriel called to thank Mr. Banet, all the pain Mr. Banet had lived with seemed to disappear. Afterward though, it became obvious he was ready to die. His wife sent out an email to tell of his rapid decline and he had family with him when he passed.
Gavriel and his father made a special trip to spend time with Mr. Banet before he died.
Mr. Banet leaves behind his wife and six grandchildren, all adored.
— Submitted by family
George Banet and his mother, Therese Flaum, a month before the Vel D'Hiv round-up.
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