Henry Faintuch was born in Radom, Poland and Sonja Faintuch in Kiev.
Henry fled Poland after the Nazi invasion in 1939 to the Russian occupied zone in Lvov. As a foreigner he was arrested and sent to a gulag near Moscow. With the German army advance in 1942 the camp was dismantled, and prisoners freed. Henry found his way to Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Sonja, her mother and her sister left Kiev when the German bombardment began and made it to the relative safety of Samarkand.
It was in Samarkand that they met, fell in love and were married in March 1944.
After the war and wanting to leave Europe, they made their way through Asia and Europe finally arriving in Eggenfelden, Bavaria, in the American occupied zone. While their immigration documents were being processed Henry was employed as the medical officer in a displaced persons hospital. They arrived in Winnipeg in October 1948. All of Henry’s family except for his parents had previously immigrated to Winnipeg between 1910 and 1912.
After a wonderful reception by the family, they began the process of settling into their new lives. While they never forgot the past, they embraced the future for whatever it had to offer. They were always forward looking especially when it came to their lifelong passion of caring for others.
They accepted positions at the Jewish Old Folks Home of Western Canada (The Sharon Home). Henry became the Director and Sonja became his assistant and Head of Housekeeping/Operations. They remained employed at the Sharon Home for over 45 years.
Together they lead the teams of employees, volunteers and community members which made the Sharon Home a modern, state of the art care home that would provide the most supportive and individually directed care to meet the needs of each resident.
Sonja oversaw and guided the individual care that each resident would receive; and took on the responsibility of the housekeeping department which oversaw over 200 residents, ensuring appropriate, compassionate care. Their standard was based on what they would expect for their own parents.
Henry and Sonja planned and oversaw five building expansions and a beautiful courtyard pavilion. Due to their passion for wanting the best possible care for each resident they pioneered the concept of enhancing the quality of life for the elderly by broadening the scope of services to meet the medical, social and spiritual needs of the residents. They focused on the needs of individuals within the context of their physical environment, never forgetting the importance of beautiful physical surroundings and care to details. Nurturing life as opposed to maintaining life and individualism were the cornerstones of care.
Henry received many awards throughout his career. Among his awards was the National Association of Jewish Homes of the Aged Award of Honour in recognition of his dynamic leadership, lifelong commitment and excellence in care and service to the Jewish aged as well as the Commemorative Medal for the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada.
Helen Kesten
Shelley Faintuch
Jack Faintuch
The Jewish Cemetery of Victoria, British Columbia 