Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada (Toronto)

Henry Wellisch was born in Vienna in 1922. In 1940, he joined with his parents an "illegal" transport to Palestine. The ship was apprehended by the British and its passengers deported to Mauritius where they were detained for the duration of the War. In 1944, Henry volunteered for the Jewish Brigade and served in Western Europe. The Mauritius refugees were allowed to enter Palestine and, in 1948, Henry served with the Israeli army during the 1948 War of Independence.

Since 1951, Henry has lived in Canada and was for many years a civil engineering technologist. About 18 years ago, he began to research his family background; he was able to trace his family back into the middle of the 18th century and has since established contact with long-lost relatives in many countries. 
                                 
Henry joined the Jewish Genealogical Society of Canada (Toronto) in 1989.  He was the Editor of our newsletter, Shem Tov, for several years and the President of our Society from 1993 to 1998. He has lectured to different groups on various genealogical and historical subjects.  Henry has also been a speaker at the 1999 seminar in New York and at the the recent 2008 International Conference in Chicago. He has published numerous articles and contributed to several websites.