Walentina Beretschnoj
* 1944

Walentina Beretschnoj, born on 3.6.1944 in Hamburg, died on 15.11.1944

Essener Straße 54 (formerly camp Tannenkoppel, Weg 4, also called "Tarpenbek = Forced labor camp of the armaments industry in Hamburg Langenhorn)

Walentina Beretschnoj was born in Hamburg on June 3, 1944. Her parents, Anna, née Spertschuk, born on Sept. 8, 1920 in Russia, and Wasili Beretschnoj, born on July 1, 1913 in the Ukraine, were presumably of Russian Orthodox faith, registered as "Orthodox". Deported from their native Russia, they, Anna since April 25, 1942, and Wasilij since April 30, 1942, had to perform forced labor in Hamburg-Langenhorn for the Hanseatische Kettenwerk GmbH (HAK) and were housed separately in the women's and men's camps in the "Ostarbeiterlager Tannenkoppel," Weg 4.

On the day of the birth of her child, Anna Beretschnoj was admitted to the Alsterdorf hospital. Nine days after giving birth, on June 12, 1944, she returned to the Tannenkoppel camp with her daughter Walentina. Walentina had to spend the short time of her life in this forced labor camp. The nutritional and living conditions were completely inadequate for her there.

On July 8, 1944, she was admitted to the Wintermoor Hospital in Ehrhorn, Hamburg, with the diagnosis of "dyspepsia" (digestive disorder), where she stayed for three months.

On October 10, 1944, she was returned to the "Tannenkoppel Eastern Workers' Camp" together with the infants Wera Kasmnilowa, born on April 10, 1944, and Woysili Kontratjuk, born on March 26, 1944, who had been housed in Wintermoor since August 5, 1944, due to "malnutrition." At the same time, the infant Svetlana Filatova, born on Febr. 27,1944 (incorrectly given the date 1945 in the hospital list), was also brought to Wintermoor from this camp with the diagnosis of "dyspepsia".

After Walentina had spent twenty days in the "Tannenhof Eastern Workers' Camp," she was hospitalized again, this time in the Langenhorn General Hospital.

There she died sixteen days later, at 4:30 a.m. on November 15, 1944. The hospital's obituary lists the cause of death as "pedatrophy" (emaciation - the most severe degree of nutritional disturbance) and Blumenthal as the signing physician.
Walentina was 5 months and 12 days old.

Ten days after her death her burial took place on November 25, 1944 in the Ohlsdorf cemetery, grave location: Q 39, row 12, no. 1. Her grave is no longer preserved. At the end of 1959 it was buried together with at least 146 graves of the children of forced laborers on site Q 39.

Nothing else is known about the fate of the infants Wera, Voysili and Svetlana.

Translation by Beate Meyer