VILKAVISKIS
          A small town in Southern Lithuania
Where the Jewish Community is no more
Eli Rutstein Album Part 2
Meir Rutshtein at the Jewish Cemetery in  Vilkaviskis post 1945
Meir Rutshtein at the Jewish Cemetery in Vilkaviskis post 1945
Eli and his wife and son infront of Meir Rutstein's house Eli Eli at the Jewish Cemetery in Vilkaviskis
Eli and his wife and son infront of Meir Rutstein's house Eli Eli at the Jewish Cemetery in Vilkaviskis
Eli his Sport teacher and Antanas Antanas and Eli at the Museum
Eli his Sport teacher and Antanas Antanas and Eli at the Museum
Its interesting that Eli has now lived in London longer than anywhere else. After leaving Lithuania when he was 16 his family settled in Israel.

He completed his education in Israel which was followed by a short spell of National Service in the Israeli Army, were he started training as a vehicle technician. At the end of his National Service Eli decided to leave Israel and move to England so he could continue his motor vehicle studies.

He eventually settled in North West London studying at Southgate College of further Education.  After some year’s being self employed as a mobile mechanic and with a little money behind him he moved to Victoria Road, Hendon and opened Eli Motors in 1979, from where he still trades to this day.


In 2009 while browsing on the internet he stumbled upon historian Ralf Salingers website dedicated to his work in Lithuania and was shocked to find a photograph of his old family home. After exchanging email’s he discovered that Ralph was working in Vilkaviskis clearing an overgrown Jewish cemetary, cleaning and  re erecting tombstone’s that had fallen. and trying to trace the relative’s of the deceased.

Ralphs work in Vilkaviskis and the growing interest in the Jewish Community in Lithuania before the second world war made Eli’s mind up to visit his birth place.


The following is a record of his first visit to Lithuania which was covered by the Jewish Chronical in London and a local newspaper in Vilkaviskis.

Last Jew of Vilkaviskis goes home

By Marcus Dysch

Created 6 Aug 2009 - 2:18pm



When Eli Rutstein and his family left Vilkaviskis 45 years ago, they were the last Jews to leave the Lithuanian town which had once boasted a Jewish community of thousands.After they left for Israel, the town’s Jewish past was largely forgotten and its 50,000 residents are mostly now unaware of the role the community once played.

But last week Mr Rutstein, now a 61-year-old father-of-three, returned to his home town and received a hero’s welcome from civic dignitaries and former classmates.

He was taken to his old home and the shul where he celebrated his barmitzvah, and visited his mother’s and grandmother’s graves. Ex-classmates presented Mr Rutstein, who runs a garage in Hendon, north west London, with flowers and chocolates.

Mr Rutstein travelled to Lithuania with his wife, Lorraine, and children Sara, Natalie and Adam. He began researching the town’s history on the internet last year and found a site run by Israeli historian Ralph Salinger.He put him in touch with Antanas Zilinskas, of the town’s main museum, and local reporter Algis Vaskevicius, who helped organise the trip.

The Cockfosters and New Southgate Synagogue member said: “It brought back a lot of memories. Because we lived a Jewish life in a small town, we were well-known. Everyone knew my father. We stood out because we were different.

“This trip was very emotional. A lot of people told me they remembered my father.“I went to my old house, but I was heartbroken because it is in such a very bad state. The people who rent it now are drunks and drug-addicts so we had to bribe them to go in.

“Vilkaviskis is much bigger than when we lived there when it was just like a shtetl. The impact the Jews had on the town was very big.”
Before the war around 3,500 Jews lived in the town, but between July and November 1941, all but 100 were murdered. Less than 1,000 of those killed are buried in marked graves.

Mr Rutstein’s father, Meir Rutsteinas, escaped the killings and survived the war after being sent to Siberia.He returned after the war and started a new family. They were joined by just three elderly Jewish couples.

The family, including teenage Eli, eventually decided to move to Israel. They finally received permission to leave, at the eighth time of asking, on November 23, 1963, the day after President Kennedy was assassinated. They moved the following year and Mr Rutstein, who moved to London in 1973, had no contact with Vilkaviskis until a brief trip to Lithuania last year.

Last week’s reunion event was at a local football ground, where he presented a sponsored kit to players from the town’s Metalas club. His gesture replicated that of his father, who had sent a kit back to Lithuania the year after leaving.

More than 200 people turned up to see and hear Mr Rutstein’s story, but not everything went to plan, as the Metalas players, in the new shirts, lost an exhibition match to a team made up of former Vilkaviskis residents. Mr Rutstein said: “It was amazing and overwhelming to see the players come out with the shirts. I made a speech, thanking them all.

“I just felt I had to do this for my parents. I wanted to let the young people of Vilkaviskis know about the history.” For the Lithuanians, he said, the visit held different emotions. Residents struggle to come to terms with their guilt over the almost total eradication of the Jewish community.“They do not want to talk about the past. They feel ashamed. If we tried to talk about it too much they stopped us,” said Mr Rutstein.

In an attempt to recognise the influence of the town’s Jews, the museum is preparing a major exhibit. More than 150 photographs of residents killed during the Shoah have already been sourced from Yad Vashem. Mr Rutstein hopes to return to Vilkaviskis next year with his sister Ida, who lives in Haifa.

Source URL: http://www.thejc.com/articles/last-jew-vilkaviskis-goes-home







Interview with Vida 2 Meeting friends at the museum 3 Meeting friends at the museum 2 Meeting friends at the museum Eli friends and family
Interview with Vida 2 Meeting friends at the museum 3 Meeting friends at the museum 2 Meeting friends at the museum Eli friends and family
Explaing to Lorraine School friends Interview with Vida Eli friends and family 2 Eli and his family
Explaing to Lorraine School friends Interview with Vida Eli friends and family 2 Eli and his family
With his Sports Teacher With his Sports Teacher 2 Watching the game Before the game Uniforms
With his Sports Teacher With his Sports Teacher 2 Watching the game Before the game Uniforms
At the cemetery The team with their new uniforms 2 The team with their new uniforms
At the cemetery The team with their new uniforms 2 The team with their new uniforms
Back to homeland - with football kit

Algis Vaskevicius


Eli Rutstein, 61, living in London, last weekend spent in his hometown Vilkaviskis, Lithuania. In this small town close to border with Russia, Kaliningrad region he was born in 1948 and lived till 1964, when together with his father Meier Rutstein and family left to Israel.

Rutstein family lived in Vilkaviskis for many years. They have a nice house in the center of Vilkaviskis. Eli went to local school and has many good classmates. Meier Rustein was a big fan of local football team „Metalas". Family survived Holocaust, because Meier earlier was sent to Siberia.

"May father wanted to emigrate to Israel very much. We were the last Jewish family in Vilkaviskis, where before The Second World War about 60 percents of all inhabitants were Jewish. Father appeal and wrote to Soviet authorities many times asking the permission to emigrate. I remember very well the 23rd of November 1963 - at that day the president of USA John Kennedy was shot and at the same day we got a permission to emigrate - it was eight attempt", -- said E.Rutstein.

Eli was 16 years old, when left Vilkaviskis. His classmates came to railway station to say goodbye to their friend. Eli gave to girls a small souvenir from cherry tree he made himself.

E.Rutstein said, that after family came to Israel his father very soon was disappointed and wanted to return to Vilkaviskis, but is was absolutely impossible. Eli went to army for 4 years, where he was repairing army cars. Later he decided to get some education.

"I understood how important was to educate. I haven't finished school in Lithuania nor Israel. I decided to go to London, where I am staying now for more than 30 years. I have motor shop in London and doing well. I married Loraine, we have 3 children - Adam, Nathali and Sarah", - told he.

All these years he wanted to visit his hometown. And last year, when he celebrated 60 years anniversary, his children decided to give him a special gift - trip to his homeland. He arrived to Kaunas, rented car and reached Vilkaviskis. He founded his parents' house, met his teacher of sport and said he will return in 2009.

"In 1965 my father sent to Vilkaviskis football team kit of sport uniforms. For them it was a very important gift. Players made a photo and sent to my father. When last year I came to Vilkaviskis and showed that photo to my teacher, he took the same photo from his pocket and put on the table. We both almost were crying", -- said Mr.Rutstein.

This year he decided to repeat the same thing in memory of his father - from London he brought 15 kits of uniforms to local football veterans' team. The team last Saturday in the stadium of Vilkaviskis played against other team, where were players born in Vilkaviskis but now living in other places. 

In stadium, were about 200 people gathered, Eli told the story of his family and about the gift. The players were very happy about uniforms that look perfect in the field. After the game they invited Eli (in his British passport is written his birth place - Vilkaviskis)  and his family for Lithuanian bear and beans.

This time Rutstein family visited the house, where Eli was living with his parents. They went to old Jewish cemetery, where is the grave of Eli' grandmother. But the most impressive meeting was with his classmates.

"They met me with flowers and old photo, asking to recognize who is who. Ladies about 60 and more years old, came with these small souvenirs I gave them 45 years ago, when they were 16 years. We were laughing, hugging, almost crying - it is difficult to describe the feelings I had", -- told Eli.

He said he left his hometown Vilkaviskis very happy, because met there so many nice people, heard so many nice stories about his family and himself. Memories are still alive, and the gift to football team will help everyone to remember that special story from the past.