Danes and Jews recall '43 boatlift

Oh, the magic of the Internet.

Last month, the local Danish and Jewish communities came together to celebrate the 1943 rescue of Danish Jews during World War II. In a little-known tale of the war, a majority of Danish Jews were boat-lifted from Nazi-occupied Denmark to safety in Sweden. Bespeaking the sense of Danish unity, Danish fishermen ferried the Jews in their boats.

The fishermen risked their lives by cramming Jewish families into the holds of hundreds of small fishing boats. It's estimated that all but 450 Jews found freedom.

The celebration was the brainchild of two Minneapolis attorneys. Like many Jews, Mark Savin grew up with a special affection for the Danes and even sported a Danish flag at his home. The other lawyer, Rikke Dierssen-Morice, has been working as a co-chair for fundraising for the area Danish America Center.

The idea was to use the boatlift as a fundraising mechanism for the center, which is planning major renovations of its facility on River Road in Minneapolis.

The plan was to bring in Danes involved in the boatlift to share stories with some of the Jewish survivors, but finding someone involved in an event 67 years ago -- who was able to travel -- proved problematic.

But thanks to modern technology, it was a success.

Jorgen Kieler, a leading organizer of the effort to transport Danish Jews to Sweden, spoke briefly to the group in Minneapolis from his home in Copenhagen via Skype. Knud Christiansen, 94, a Danish Olympic rower, Skyped from New York about ferrying one Jew at a time across the Oresund Channel in his racing shell. Gustav Goldberger spoke in person about being rescued.

Between 300 and 400 people attended the event, about $1,500 was raised and ground was broken on new construction.

"I think it was a good fellowship moment between the Danish and Jewish communities," Dierssen-Morice said.

Mark Brunswick • 612-673-4434