What happened to Walter?

Walter Loewen wrote the following account of what happened to him and his family during WWII. Walter's parents were Greta (nee Rempel) and Jasch Loewen. He settled in Manitoba and got married. He and his wife, Elvira, had four kids:

(i) Hedy, married John Joycey (who had 3daughters)

(ii) Frieda, married Frank Thiessen (who had 2 sons and 1 daughter)

(iii) Christine, married Frank (?) (who had 2 daughters and 1 son)

(iv) Nellie, married Hardy Groening (who had 2 daughters and 1 son)

Walter passed away in 1999 at the age of 72 in Winnipeg. His obituary says, "He helped many by sharing his handyman skills, facilitating refugees with immigration, and giving rides to those who needed. He will be remembered for his strong Christian faith, integrity, generosity and caring. His church life was very important to him and he gave of himself freely. His grandchildren will remember him for his love of life, and the times he spent with them in his workshop, creating toys and intriguing them with unique gadgets."

Walter Lowen

In reply to a request for more detailed information as to what happened to the rest of the children, Walter Loewen wrote the following to Arthur Rempel in a letter dated August 12, 1996 from Winnipeg Canada.

When Dad (Jasch Loewen, Greta’s husband) was sent to Central Asia, Karaganda, our family: Mom, Arthur, Kolja, Walter, Liesel, Gretel and Jascha continued to live in our own house in Gnadenfeld. Mom began working for the collective farm and Arthur and Kolja worked there through the three months of summer break (sometimes longer). Liesel and I helped Mom at home and on the field. When the war with Germany started, Arthur was sent to dig anti-tank ditches on the right side (western) of the Dnieper river. Kolja, a few weeks later, somewhere on the left side of the Dnieper river. Because of the rapid advance of the Germans, Arthur was cut off from us for a while. But Kolja was sent back home after a few weeks and he arrived home on his 16th birthday. The next day, Kolja had to report to the local administration (Militz). With poor clothing, home-made shoes, an old blanket, and a little food, he and the rest of the male population (ages 16-65) were marched off out of our village, under heavy guard, eastward. We heard of their fate only many years after the war. Kolja, age 16, my uncle Peter Loewen, age 65, and his son, Kolja, 21 years old, all succumbed to the hardships of the “Tewd Army” (work army) and hunger in the first three months, probably November, 1941, place unknown.

Mom, Walter, Liesel, Gretel and Jacha Jr., together with the remaining German population, were to be exiled to Central Asia. Under heavy guard, the special KGB unit transported us on wagons (drawn by tractors) to the nearest railroad station, Stulnevo. But, the rapid advance of the Germans saved us from that exile into sheer horror. About two weeks after our return to our homes, Arthur came back also, on foot. Footsore, but happy to have survived and to be reunited with the family. Shortly after, he was drafted into the self defense unit, which in a short time, developed into a real cavalry unit and was used to fight the local Partisans (guerrillas).  When the Germans retreated in the fall of 1943, these boys protected the trek. Except for the first day of our trek, the weather was good and we made good time. After we crossed the Dnieper river, we rested for a month. But, the Red Army advanced and we had to flee further west. The weather was good at the start and we made good progress, but then a wheel on our wagon broke and we were left behind. The German officer in charge of the trek brought us a new wheel in his car. I replaced the wheel and we tried to catch up to our village group. But, the new wheel broke the same day and we were stranded. With much difficulty, we dragged our wagon on three wheels and the hub to the next town and I went in search of a wheel. On the second day, we found a wheel (but that is a story by itself), a poor one, discarded by someone. But it lasted the rest of the trek.

Because we had lost contact with our group, our provisions ran out, and the weather turned against us too. We all had poor clothing to start with, and our shoes were falling apart, so we decided to take the opportunity to go by train. That is, Mom and Liesel Gretel and Jascha would go and I would follow with the wagon and the stuff. I managed to go on with the four horses and the wagon and our cow for another week. Then, it became impossible to find feed for the animals and food for myself. My major diet was the milk from the cow but she had contracted foot and mouth disease. So, I was forced to give up the horses, wagon and cow and also go by train. At the city “Winitza”, most of the stragglers had a chance to continue by train. But, this train did not go to the same place where my loved ones were. Eventually, I landed in “Oberthegau”, where my family was. Four months later, on January 20, 1945, I was sent to the eastern front, at Posen, and Mom and my three siblings had to flee to Germany. I never saw Mom again.

On April 16, 1945, the Russians captured me. Meanwhile Mom, Liesel, Gretel and Jascha were “repatriated” to Kostroma in the fall of 1945.

Since the big trek, Arthur was at many different places fighting guerrillas (Russians). In December, 1944, he was sent to Budapest, where he was killed in action during a Russian tank assault, on New Year’s Eve, 1944.

I spent 3 and 1/2 years as a POW in a camp in Poland. For three years, I worked underground as a coal miner. Through the efforts of the M.C.C. (Mennonite Central Committee), I was freed in November, 1948 and got to the M.C.C. refugee camp in West Germany, “Gronau”, on December 24, 1948. Through the kind sponsorship of Uncle David and Aunt Agneta Klassen, I was permitted to come to Canada on July 25, 1949. 

After a year on the farm, I moved to the city (Winnipeg), where I found a job, went to night school, found a wife, and got married October 4, 1952. God blessed us with five children. Our fourth child died shortly after birth.  But the others all live in Winnipeg:

Hedy with husband John Joycey have three daughters, 

Frieda with husband Frank Thiessen have two sons and one daughter

Nellie and husband Hardy Groening have two daughters and one son

Frank Loewen with this wife Christine (nee Rempel) have two girls and one son

I have been retired since early 1990.

….Walter Loewen