Siggi Wilzig
Encyclopedia
Siegbert B. Wilzig (March 11, 1926 – January 8, 2003) was a survivor of the Holocaust
, oil tycoon, commercial banker and assistant to Nobel Prize
winner writer Elie Wiesel
. He triumphed over the worst possible conditions, and became a self-made millionaire.
family with heritage dating back 500 years in the country. In 1943, the entire family was moved to Auschwitz because they were Jewish. Siggi, then 16, had already spent 3 years doing forced labor. 1 of his Brothers was beaten to death by the Gestapo while the family was living in a Nazi controlled Ghetto with other Jewish families. Upon coming to the camp, Wilzig lied to Nazi guards, stating his age to be 18, not 16. This was his only chance for survival, as he was deemed old enough to work. At Auschwitz, 59 members of his family were killed over a three-year period. After only two days at the concentration camp, his father was also killed. Siggi had to I.D. his Father from a pile of corpses, His Mother and grandmother were sent straight to the gas chamber, while his grandfather and one of his brothers were beaten to death, while two others were killed by Nazis guards just two days before the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp was liberated. Twenty times Siggi Wilzig faced the cold stare of Nazi doctor Josef Mengele
during the selection process, and each he narrowly escaped death.
Although he had previously worked in the supply warehouses, nicknamed Canada by survivors his last four months in Auschwitz were spent working in a laundry, where the clothes of murdered Jews were washed and redistributed to the Germans. Wilzig was the only child in his Jewish school class of 1,500 students to survive the Nazis' genocidal efforts. In all he spent 1 years at Auschwitz and 6 months in Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp.
, Austria
, by the U.S. Army. He was grateful of his American rescuers that he spent the next 2 years assisting U.S. Army Intelligence and The Office of Strategic Services
(OSS)in tracking down Nazi Guards and Gestapo operatives responsible for so many deaths. he immigrated to America
in 1947, weighing only 90 pounds, with nothing in his pockets and knew no one. His first job was shoveling snow in the Bronx after a heavy blizzard that winter.
In the 1950s Wilzig held odd jobs including working as a bow-tie gluer and presser in a Brooklyn sweatshop, a traveling school notebook salesman and a furniture store manager. He met Naomi Sisselman, nine years his junior, and the two were married in a civil ceremony on New Year’s Eve 1953. The couple had three children over the course of their marriage: sons Ivan
and Alan
and daughter Sherry.
During his tenure, the Wilshire Oil Company acquired a large interest in the Trust Company of New Jersey, a consumer- and small-business-oriented bank. Thus with his shared interests, Wilzig became a bank Director in 1969 and was elected Chairman and President just two years later. Since 1971, the bank's assets have grown from $200 million to more than $4 billion. Wilzig retired as president and chief executive in 2002 and was succeeded by his son, Alan. He remained chairman until his death. The bank, now based in Jersey City, remains an independent bank, retaining oil and gas interests, and was still controlled by the Wilzig family for many years. At the end of 2003, nearly a year after Wilzig’s death, the bank was sold to North Fork Bank for Stock.
was appointed to head the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council by President Jimmy Carter
, he asked that “Wilzig be the first person to serve with him.” Siggi was also founding director and fellow of the Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School of Yeshiva University
. In recognition of his contributions to the United States and for serving humanity while honoring the heritage of ancestors, he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1998.
Siggi’s successes enabled him to support a number of charities, He also supported the Jersey City Medical Center
, a free treatment center for immigrants that now bears the Wilzig name, as well as served on the Board of Directors of the Daughters of Miriam Home for the Aged and the Jewish Home and Rehabilitation Center. He even raised over 100 million in Isareli bonds, due too his hard work he was awarded Prime Minister's Medal of the State of Israel.
Siggi Wilzig died in 2003 due to his several year battle with multiple myeloma. He was 76 years old. He is survived by his wife, Naomi, his sons Ivan Wilzig
and Alan, his daughter, his brother, Erwin, and two grandchildren.
The Holocaust
The Holocaust , also known as the Shoah , was the genocide of approximately six million European Jews and millions of others during World War II, a programme of systematic state-sponsored murder by Nazi...
, oil tycoon, commercial banker and assistant to Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner writer Elie Wiesel
Elie Wiesel
Sir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
. He triumphed over the worst possible conditions, and became a self-made millionaire.
Early life
Siggi Wilzig was born in 1926 in Krojanke, West Prussia. The Wilzigs were an old GermanGermans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
family with heritage dating back 500 years in the country. In 1943, the entire family was moved to Auschwitz because they were Jewish. Siggi, then 16, had already spent 3 years doing forced labor. 1 of his Brothers was beaten to death by the Gestapo while the family was living in a Nazi controlled Ghetto with other Jewish families. Upon coming to the camp, Wilzig lied to Nazi guards, stating his age to be 18, not 16. This was his only chance for survival, as he was deemed old enough to work. At Auschwitz, 59 members of his family were killed over a three-year period. After only two days at the concentration camp, his father was also killed. Siggi had to I.D. his Father from a pile of corpses, His Mother and grandmother were sent straight to the gas chamber, while his grandfather and one of his brothers were beaten to death, while two others were killed by Nazis guards just two days before the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp was liberated. Twenty times Siggi Wilzig faced the cold stare of Nazi doctor Josef Mengele
Josef Mengele
Josef Rudolf Mengele , also known as the Angel of Death was a German SS officer and a physician in the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. He earned doctorates in anthropology from Munich University and in medicine from Frankfurt University...
during the selection process, and each he narrowly escaped death.
Although he had previously worked in the supply warehouses, nicknamed Canada by survivors his last four months in Auschwitz were spent working in a laundry, where the clothes of murdered Jews were washed and redistributed to the Germans. Wilzig was the only child in his Jewish school class of 1,500 students to survive the Nazis' genocidal efforts. In all he spent 1 years at Auschwitz and 6 months in Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp.
Life after the Holocaust
On May 5, 1945, Wilzig — whose forearm bears the number the Nazis tattooed on him, 104732, was rescued from the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp in MauthausenMauthausen
Mauthausen is a small market town in Upper Austria, Austria. It is located at about 20 kilometers east of the city of Linz, and has a population of 4,850 .During World War II, it became the site of the Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp complex....
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, by the U.S. Army. He was grateful of his American rescuers that he spent the next 2 years assisting U.S. Army Intelligence and The Office of Strategic Services
Office of Strategic Services
The Office of Strategic Services was a United States intelligence agency formed during World War II. It was the wartime intelligence agency, and it was a predecessor of the Central Intelligence Agency...
(OSS)in tracking down Nazi Guards and Gestapo operatives responsible for so many deaths. he immigrated to America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1947, weighing only 90 pounds, with nothing in his pockets and knew no one. His first job was shoveling snow in the Bronx after a heavy blizzard that winter.
In the 1950s Wilzig held odd jobs including working as a bow-tie gluer and presser in a Brooklyn sweatshop, a traveling school notebook salesman and a furniture store manager. He met Naomi Sisselman, nine years his junior, and the two were married in a civil ceremony on New Year’s Eve 1953. The couple had three children over the course of their marriage: sons Ivan
Ivan Wilzig
Ivan L. Wilzig , also known as Sir Ivan or Peaceman, is a musician who is best known for techno remixes of 1960s songs such as "Imagine" and "San Francisco". He is also founder of the nonprofit Peaceman Foundation and appeared as Mr...
and Alan
Alan Wilzig
Alan Wilzig is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, championship-winning race car driver, and restaurateur. He is also son of the late Siggi Wilzig, a German Holocaust survivor. Alan's father rose to fame after coming to America with nothing and eventually earned his fortune in finance...
and daughter Sherry.
Building an empire
In the early 1960s, he played the stock market and invested his meager savings, along with money borrowed from his father-in-law. He made smart investments, buying up cheap Canadian oil and gas stocks. One stock that particularly caught his interest was the Wilshire Oil Company of Texas. Along with his colleagues, Wilzig made a large investment in the oil and gas producer and was elected a member of Wilshire’s boards in 1965. Six months later, at the age of 39, he was elected President and Chief Executive of the company.During his tenure, the Wilshire Oil Company acquired a large interest in the Trust Company of New Jersey, a consumer- and small-business-oriented bank. Thus with his shared interests, Wilzig became a bank Director in 1969 and was elected Chairman and President just two years later. Since 1971, the bank's assets have grown from $200 million to more than $4 billion. Wilzig retired as president and chief executive in 2002 and was succeeded by his son, Alan. He remained chairman until his death. The bank, now based in Jersey City, remains an independent bank, retaining oil and gas interests, and was still controlled by the Wilzig family for many years. At the end of 2003, nearly a year after Wilzig’s death, the bank was sold to North Fork Bank for Stock.
Philanthropy
In addition to his business interests, Wilzig was very active in humanitarian and philanthropic affairs, particularly those related to the Holocaust. In 1980, he was appointed as a founding member of the Holocaust Memorial Council in Washington. He was the first Holocaust survivor to lecture at West Point, where after his lecture to the cadets, he received a standing ovation and applause. When Nobel Prize winner Holocaust author Elie WieselElie Wiesel
Sir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
was appointed to head the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council by President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
, he asked that “Wilzig be the first person to serve with him.” Siggi was also founding director and fellow of the Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School of Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private university in New York City, with six campuses in New York and one in Israel. Founded in 1886, it is a research university ranked as 45th in the US among national universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2012...
. In recognition of his contributions to the United States and for serving humanity while honoring the heritage of ancestors, he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1998.
Siggi’s successes enabled him to support a number of charities, He also supported the Jersey City Medical Center
Jersey City Medical Center
The Jersey City Medical Center is a hospital in Jersey City, New Jersey. The hospital has had different facilities in the city.-History:The hospital began as the "Charity Hospital" but the Board of Aldermen of Jersey City bought land at Baldwin Avenue and Montgomery Street in 1882 for a new hospital...
, a free treatment center for immigrants that now bears the Wilzig name, as well as served on the Board of Directors of the Daughters of Miriam Home for the Aged and the Jewish Home and Rehabilitation Center. He even raised over 100 million in Isareli bonds, due too his hard work he was awarded Prime Minister's Medal of the State of Israel.
Siggi Wilzig died in 2003 due to his several year battle with multiple myeloma. He was 76 years old. He is survived by his wife, Naomi, his sons Ivan Wilzig
Ivan Wilzig
Ivan L. Wilzig , also known as Sir Ivan or Peaceman, is a musician who is best known for techno remixes of 1960s songs such as "Imagine" and "San Francisco". He is also founder of the nonprofit Peaceman Foundation and appeared as Mr...
and Alan, his daughter, his brother, Erwin, and two grandchildren.