This book was only made possible thanks to those who had spent years researching our family. I remain eternally grateful for their generosity in time in sharing their findings. I am sure I am missing some people, and if you are one of them, please let me know, so I can give you proper credit, oh and accept my sincere apology for this oversite!

Keith Olive, whose curiosity got all of this started. To better understand his relatives, Keith interviewed his parents, cousins, aunts and uncles to find who was who. He even had his parents, Leon and Cypora, interview family members when they would travel to Isreal or other locations. The result was a handwritten tree that formed a basis for my work. Keith also helped me by volunteering to have his Y DNA tested. This was very important to better understanding our more ancient history along his paternal line.

Judith Silberg, who, after the birth of my son, Kyle, mailed him a family tree booklet that still is in my drawer (I really need to give it to him some day). It was a combination of receiving this booklet from her, and a separate piece of research from my paternal grandparents that inspired me to become a Genealogist. Recently, I was saddened to learn that my Cousin Judith passed away, she will be missed!

Silvana Dessi Olive, who interviewed my grandparents, Leon and Cypora. It is their stories (among others) that provide the color to what I am writing. It is also wonderful to hear their voices from time to time.

Nili Olay, my mother, not only is she responsible for me being here, but she also instilled a love of writing and an interest in the Jewish faith and culture. Furthermore, as my chief editor she has made this a much better book. I am also grateful that she also took the time to write down her life story, it will appear later in this book.

Joy Logan, my wife. She helped me greatly with some of the tougher chapters. She also helped guide me on how to better communicate who is who. If it is still unclear the fault is mine.

Ben Eber, who was very much a genealogical partner of mine. He graciously shared his research which built on the work of Keith and Judith. He also introduced me to unknown family members and a local genealogist who helped fill in many blanks. His research on key cities in the Lodz area will be found in several places within this book.

Yaron Grofman, who was one of my primary resources for the Besser limb of our Family Tree. He also helped coordinate interviews and chased down key information.

Joe Olive, who created an interactive PowerPoint improving my ability to tell you which ancestors are included in which chapters.

Other key contributors, who took time to answer my many questions include: Bernard Markowitcz (who found key information on Machel Liverand), Fran Felman, Sheldon Nadler, Shlomo Grofman,

Finally, Grandpa Leon and Grandma Cypora, who were the subject of Silvana’s interview, wrote their stories and were the best grandparents anyone could ask for. In her memoir, my grandmother said, “I would like this story to be passed on to future generations”. Through this book I seek to honor her wish.