Werner Heinz Pfander

On March 5, 1933, Werner Heinz Pfander was born in the beautiful City of BRESLAU, in Eastern GERMANY. To the Son of the Late Walter & Helene Pfaender and brothers Harry & Peter. Survived by Sisters Hannalore & Monica.

On October 31, 2025, Our Father Werner (aka Dad, Daddy, Opa, Great Opa), at the age of 92 passed away and joined our Mom Carol Ellamae (6/5/1935 - 3/26/2024), his adoring wife of 66 years. Leaving behind the broken hearts of his Children Lorraine & husband Vincent Casolaro, Kenneth & wife Roseann and Susan & husband Louis Cortese. In addition to their children, 5 grandchildren Louis III (Nicole), Robert (Raquel), Michael (Maria) Michael and Samantha and 4 great grandchildren Carter, Madison, Frankie and Massimo and numerous granddogs and grandkitties. As well as extended family and friends.

In 2002, Our Dad was interviewed by his grandson Michael for a school project. Our Dad opened up to him on his feelings of growing up as a child and surviving WW II and how it changed everything about his life. Also included are memories from Dads sister Hannalore of their childhood and their journey from Germany to America. The story began…

Werner grew up in a house where you were taught to respect your elders, his father Walter (Protestant) was an amateur Boxer and worked in the live fish wholesale business. His Mom Helene (Catholic) was a salesperson and housewife. They lived in a beautiful apartment building which was adjacent to the Oder River. It was a busy place with lots of sightseeing boats full of tourists. There were over 300 bridges in Breslau before WW II. There was always plenty of food and they were dressed well. Werner stated “we had lots of friends and played soccer, stick ball and tag. In the age group of 10-14 you belonged to the PIMPFE (which is equal to the Boy Scouts). We were groomed to become professional Soldiers”. They were considered a “middle class family”. Then life as they knew it changed….

The year was 1945, Werner (12 yrs old) recalls how all the children were taken from school in the city and brought to farms (out of the city) because of the bombing. He stated “I still remember the air raids and watching the planes dropping bombs above us. A lot of my friends were in school one day, and if they weren’t there the next… you knew they got killed. You kind of got used to knowing that “you could be there one day and gone the next”. It was a way of life that everyone accepted and expected. Then one day, the city of Breslau was being evacuated and overtaken by the Soviet Troops and the children had to hurry back to the city because a train was going to take them west (to Czechoslovakia). His father was already serving on the Russian front in the Army and was shot (becoming a prisoner of war by the British until his release in 1947). In January of 1945, his Mom along with Brother Harry (13), Hannalore (5) and Peter (1 ½) boarded a train from Breslau Germany (they were the last civilians to be evacuated) and went to Bautzen (with the promise of being able to return home in 2 weeks). The next stop was on the outskirts of Dresden. Air raid sirens warned them and everyone was ordered off the train because the city was being bombed with phosphor bombs. Thousands of Civilians died during this bombing and the city was destroyed. After the bombing, they continued on to Czechoslovakia and spent quite a few months there.

During that time, Werner's baby brother Peter got sick with diphtheria and passed away about a month after he turned two.His Mother was just told to dig a hole and put him in it. Fortunately, there was a caring woman in town that brought a lil box strapped to her back and Peter was wrapped in a blanket and put in the box and the woman told them “she would take good care of the baby”. They never could find out where his baby brother Peter was buried.

Soon after, Werner's Mom (Helene) got word that they were going to be sent to Siberia, which meant certain death. So she decided to take a chance and cross back into Germany. So, in the middle of the night along with another woman (leaving Harry, Hannalore and Werner behind), found their way back through the forest and crossed the border back to Germany (where they dropped off a few belongings). They had to be back in Czechoslovakia before 6am roll call.

The following night they headed out again, and the only thing they remember is being told not to make a sound; the Soviets had orders, shoot to kill, no questions asked. Werner remembers it was during a winter storm and they didn’t have many clothes to wear and even their shoes were taken away from them.

During this nighttime crossing, they encountered a Soviet check point which was a small building in the middle of the forest. The weather was extremely cold and windy and the soldiers did not go outside, and they were able to get past. Then suddenly they were stopped by soldiers, fortunately they were “American Soldiers”, and Werner's mother showed them a letter from her sister who migrated to America in the 20’s. Luckily, the soldier was of German Descent and was able to read the letter. He loaded them in the jeep and drove them across the border. He wished them luck in finding her Husband.

They of course could never go back to Breslau. It was now called Wroclaw and was part of Poland. What was once a beautiful city was now a mass of rubble. They later found out that their building was the only one left still standing on a very long block.

Werner along with his Mother and siblings (Harry and Hannalore) ended up in the town of Selb in Bavaria, and then to Coburg, where they were housed in a hall at the University and slept on straw spread on the floor.

Searching through the Red Cross his Mother was able to locate her sister-in-law, who in turn was able to locate her Husband Walter. He was a prisoner of war of the English, he was their cook! He was in a little town in the Northern part of Germany near the Danish border called Leck. They were all finally reunited with their father! Our Aunt Hanna recalls “The English Soldiers were very kind. They spent the next five years living in the Army barracks, two rooms for the 6 of us, and oh yes; we had a baby sister (Monica) born the year after we got back to Germany!”

In 1951, Werner's parents applied to immigrate to America as displaced persons/refugees. They needed a sponsor who would put them up until Werner's father found employment. They also went through all kinds of health checks, character references, and had to get their share of inoculations to make sure they weren’t bringing any diseases into the country. They were approved and sailed from Bremen in December of 1951, on an American Troop transport ship called “The General C.C. Ballou.” They encountered a terrible storm, and recall how the waves were crashing over the ship, everyone was ordered to stay below deck and anything that was not secured was flying around. The trip took eleven days, and Werner stated “It was 2am when our ship sailed into harbor. All the lights, people and cars amazed me. So many people were awake that hour of the night. The City was so alive!! I was overly impressed!” Ironically, Werner (18) had no idea that he was meeting the love of his life Carol Ellamae Rehbock (16) on Christmas Eve a few days later.

The United States paid for Werner's family to come over, because they were considered “Displaced Persons”. They had nothing left and nowhere to live. The only thing that you were obligated to do in return was after 2 years of being in the States; you were drafted into the Army.

Werner's family settled in Franklin Square, NY and they all went to Sewanhaka High School at night to learn the English language. Werner's father became a brick layer, worked in a lumber yard and then became the head custodian (which was a civil service job) at Frank Cary High School in Franklin Square. Werner found a job working in a Pastry Shop.

Subsequently, Werner was called to report to active duty on December 3rd, 1953. It was postponed because of Christmas until January 5th 1954.

The next chapter of Werner's life began…

Werner reported to Fort Dix, New Jersey and during that time he received one “love letter” from Carol. Carol graduated from Sewanhaka High School in Floral Park that same year. During his years in the service, Werner was stationed in New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. He was in active duty from 1954-1956. When Werner came home from the service, he asked Carol on a date. Their first date was at RADIO CITY in NY to see the Christmas Show. They had a one year courtship after which Werner and Carol were married on July 27, 1958 at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Bellrose, NY. Werner spent one more year working in a pastry shop before he went to work for Ford Instrument Company as an electro-mechanical assembler, later Potter Instrument for Manufacturing Defense and ending his Military Manufacturing Career at Miltope Corp.

Werner was very proud of the opportunities and successes he was able to achieve. He moved up in the ranks from being a lead person, to foreman, supervisor manager and finally a director of manufacturing. He was in charge of 350 employees. Werner received distinguished service awards from the Secretary of the Navy for 25 years of continuous service on the Polaris and Trident Nuclear Submarines manufacturing electronic equipment. He also worked on the guidance systems for the Redstone and Jupiter Missile. Werner worked on the Guidance Systems for the Droon Pilotless spy planes and many other electronic instruments for the Military ground, sea and air defense. At 59 years old, Werner was forced into early retirement after the Company downsized and was relocating to Alabama. The year was 1992.

In 1963, Werner and Carol moved into their 1st home in Commack, New York, where they raised their 3 children. Werner was a strict but loving Father. You knew that you ate everything that was put on your plate. Werner was known for being meticulous when it came to his cars and lawn. He would always enjoy watching soccer, nascar racing (his favorite driver was Jeff Gordon), boxing and football. They loved having their neighboring friends over for a night of “playing cards” once a month. Werner and Carol hosted many parties and loved to be surrounded by family and friends. He was sharp as a tack and could talk politics with the best of you. He knew what was going on in the world and had strong opinions.

In 1995, Werner and Carol had their dream house built in Little River, South Carolina. They enjoyed long walks on the beach, having their children and grandchildren visit and playing miniature golf. Their door was always open, they enjoyed it when family and friends came to visit. Until the day our Mom passed on March 26, 2024, they would leave little post-it “love notes” all around the house, they held hands, always kissed each other good morning and good night and always told one another “I LOVE YOU”.

At the end of Michaels interview with his Opa he asked…If you could, what would you change about your life? To which his Opa replied, “I wouldn’t change a thing. I believe that I exceeded the goals that I set for myself.”

And finally… What do you think about the United States today? Opa replied “I still think that the United States is the greatest country in the world to live in. I hope that everyone will always be able to achieve their goals, no matter what their religion, race, color or creed”.

Our Dad always said “I’m going to live to 102”. God had another plan for him and in the end, he knew it was time to go. Our Dad was peacefully called home to join his loving wife Carol to dance amongst the heavens. Our Guardian Angels watching over us, until we are together again. We Love You More Daddy. Give Mommy a tight hug and kiss from all of us. XOXOXO