In this first episode of Series Seven, host Andrew Martin meets Jackie Kohnstamm - a lecturer, author, playwright, and family historian. Jackie tells Andrew how she got hooked on researching family histories after hearing stories with missing bits, and then finding letters. She tells him what motivated her to write her book 'The Memory Keeper: A Journey Into The Holocaust To Find My Family', and...

THE LIFE STORY - CHARLOTTE RYCHWALSKI
Jackie has chosen to tell the life story of her maternal aunt, Charlotte Rychwalski (known as 'Lotte'). 

It's clear from Jackie's description of Charlotte, that she has some very fond memories of her aunt being the daring, and fascinating relative who would bring excitement into the family home after the Second World War, but through the memories Charlotte shared, and a cache of letters, Jackie has been able to discover more about her life. 

THE BRICK WALL - JUTTA TOWNSEND
Jackie is looking for one of her maternal cousins - Jutta - the surviving descendant of a family that was sadly murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust. Jutta Rychwalski escaped from Germany on one of the Kindertransport trains.

Jackie knows that Jutta was married at least once, perhaps twice, but her last husband was named Frederick Townsend, and they lived in the Wakefield area of Yorkshire. Jutta is known to have died in the Wakefield area in 2012 aged 87 years, having been predeceased by Frederick in 1982. The couple had a son named Steven in 1955, but he died in 1973.

Jackie would like your help to discover more about her cousin's life.

If you think you can help Jackie with a clue or research idea, then you can send us a message via our contact form, and we'll pass the message straight on to her.

In the meantime, Jackie is fascinated by Andrew's offer of help, but can he get her to the church on time?

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Episode Credits:

• Andrew Martin - Host and Producer
• Jackie Kohnstamm - Guest

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