Mosaic - Eva Schott Berek
1921-2023 | Born in Berlin, Germany | Arrived on Angel Island in 1940
Eva Schott Berek crossed the Pacific as part of a group of 150 Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazi regime. In total, 500 Jewish refugees passed through the Port of San Francisco between 1939 and 1940. About 25% of them were detained on Angel Island, including Eva and her parents. After their release, the Schott family settled in the Bay Area.
Eva's passport from 1940, issued by the Nazi government. A large red J on the first page indicated that she was Jewish. Courtesy of Eva Schott Berek.
Eva’s childhood in Berlin was disrupted by increasing oppression and violence towards Jews under the Nazi regime. Eva’s parents were not allowed to work and Eva was kicked out of her high school at age 14. In 1940, as Jewish families around them began to be sent to concentration camps, the family left Berlin. They were among the last Jews able to escape Nazi Germany. Eva's father had siblings living in the US who were able to sponsor visas for the family.
Eva (far right) stands with other young Jewish refugee women on the deck of the Rakuyo Maru, the ship that took them from Yokohama to San Francisco, 1940. Courtesy of Eva Schott Berek.
The Nazi government did not allow people to leave Germany through Europe, so the Schott family took the long journey east. They travelled by train through the Baltic countries, across the USSR, and finally to Harbin, China. From Harbin they sailed to Yokohama, Japan, where they boarded a steamship for the three-week journey to San Francisco. They were sent to Angel Island upon arrival, even though they had valid visas. They had very little money, so they had to undergo questioning to prove to the US government that they would be able to support themselves.
Eva’s mother Hedwig (Hedi) Schott (left) and father Ernst Schott (right) on the deck of the Rakuyo Maru en route to San Francisco, 1940. Courtesy of Eva Schott Berek
On Angel Island, Eva's father was sent to the detention barracks while Eva and her mother were housed in the hospital. Eva turned 19 while they were still detained, and her father asked to see his wife and daughter to celebrate. Under the supervision of a guard, the family reunited after a week in separate quarters. Eva later recalled: "My father wished me a happy birthday and even gave me a present: two oranges. And that was the biggest deal that you could imagine. We all cried.”
The family was released after eight days on Angel Island into the care of a Jewish charitable group in San Francisco. The Schotts took whatever jobs they could find, renting cheap rooms until they could afford an apartment in the Fillmore District. Eva met her husband, Seymour Berek, on a blind date in 1943. They married six months later and eventually settled in the East Bay Area. Seymour started an optometry practice near their home.
Eva at 100 years old in 2022. Courtesy of Eva Schott Berek.
Later in life, Eva developed a passion for wild animals. She volunteered for a local wildlife rehabilitation center, raising baby opossums and squirrels in her home. She lived in the Bay Area for over 80 years, but never returned to visit Angel Island: “It is too painful for me. I cannot go back there and think of my parents. I just can’t.”
