Intergenerational Ples(c)hen meeting at Heidelberg

06.09.2024 | Familie

Three Generations Heiligenberg 13 August 2024:
From left to right: Gabby Asbell (18), Heidrun Gerzymisch (80), Laurryn Asbell, born Gerzymisch (47), Manfred Gerzymisch (69)

Intergenerational Ples(c)hen meeting at Heidelberg/Germany on August 13, 2024 with family members of three generations present from (East & West) Germany and Canada.

We were able to establish the following relations:

  • All four of us are genealogically interconnected through being direct descendants of Ernst Eduard and Agnes Gerzymisch/Berlin and their sons Erwin, Ernst and Hans Gerzymisch. (Details available by pdf upon request)
  • Gabby Asbell, the youngest is the daughter of Laurryn Asbell, born Gerzymisch and Jason Asbell. of Nelson, BC.
  • Laurryn Asbel, born Gerzymisch is the daughter of Matthias Gerzymisch, son of Ernst Gerzymisch who had emigrated to Canada after WW II-and lives in Nelson, B.C.
  • Manfred Gerzymisch is the son of veterinarian Dr Jürgen Gerzymisch, son of Erwin
    Manfred graduated from the Belarusian National Technical University in Minsk as Dipl. Ing. and from TU Dresden as translator for Russian and has been a business journalist. He now lives in Bad Soden am Taunus/Germany
  • Heidrun Gerzymisch is the oldest of the group and daughter of Hans Gerzymisch. She graduated from Heidelberg University as a translator for English and Spanish and from Schiller International University (London), as B.A Bus.Ad, received her PhD in English Literature from The University of Mainz and the venia legendi as Dr. phil habil. from the University Heidelberg. She became a professor of linguistics and translation science at Saarland University und lives in Heidelberg/Germany today.

Here is what we found:

  • Laurryn brought us the handwritten correspondence of Erwin Gerzymisch with Heinrich Mann and some personal correspondence between Hans and Ernst Gerzymisch (available by pdf upon request) and we discussed efforts to further research correspondence archived by Manfred Gerzymisch and so far available as: Heinrich Mann und Erwin Gerzymisch 1947 – 1949. Aufbau 6, 1950, S. 579-584
  • We could establish the geneological relation between Manfred Gerzymisch and Dr. Dr. h.c. Hans-Joachim Schäfer, born Gerzymisch (details in his book Du hast vielleicht noch nicht alles versucht, Kassel University Press 2007). Manfred and Hans-Joachim are cousins, with Manfred being the grandson of Erwin Gerzymisch and Hans-Joachim being Erwin’s son.

We discussed further plans & possible possible reunions and reaching out to other family members.

Heidelberg, August 2024