An Uncommon Journey

In September 1939, Nazi Austria turned on their Jews with a vengeance and the family Wacs fled Vienna to save their lives.

Destination: Shanghai. They had proper travel documents but were turned away from every country with one exception: Shanghai, China which required no papers at all.

Had they not escaped, one week later war broke out arid this family’s fate might have been quite different

Shanghai had a large population of Jews who had fled from many countries and lived in a Ghetto where life was hard. Yet, they survived due to hard work and the belief that they would eventually reach their destination: America.

An uncommon journey addresses universal issues - persecutions and the will to survive. This unique memoir by a brother and sister ten years apart, shares different memories, often of the same events. The truth becomes a mosaic with many facets creating a moving portrait of a family uprooted.

Deborah Strobin has long been active on the fundraising front. After her husband’s passing, she organized “Reach for Tomorrow's Research Today”. The largest fundraiser gala in US history for stem cell research.
Ms. Strobin lives in San Francisco.

Ilie Wacs studied art in Paris after World War II. He became a celebrated coat designer in the United States. After retiring he devoted his full time to painting with his works often shown in New York galleries. He lives in New York City and Eastern Long Island,