Riss Hermine

Riss, Hermine Hermine Riss (neé Piller) was born in Vienna in 1903, where she was a friend of Elizabeth Heinrich, a Viennese Jew. In 1933, Elizabeth married a Chinese man whom she had met when he was studying music there. In September 1935 the couple had a son, Felix Lee, and a few months later went to Shanghai. Within a short time Elizabeth and her husband separated, he becoming a professor of music in Nanking and she returning to Vienna in March 1936 with her infant son, where she lived with her mother, Regina Heinrich (neé Bustin). The couple was formally divorced in 1937. Under the Nazi regime, the Heinrichs were forced to leave their place of residence twice, finally sharing a small, overcrowded apartment with a number of other Jews. In 1941, the Nazis began deporting Austria’s Jews to the East, among them those who shared the apartment with the Heinrichs. Elizabeth Heinrich and her son did not appear on the list of deportees, apparently because of their Chinese citizenship. However, Elizabeth was fearful for her mother and set about to find her a place to hide. She turned to her friend, Hermine Riss, who agreed to shelter Regina. Regina moved in with Hermine in 1942 and remained there until the end of the war. During this period, Hermine Riss also hid two other Jews in her home: Stefanie Zach (neé Rosenstadt) and Otto Breichenstein. The two hid in various places to escape deportation, including Riss’s home. By sheltering Jews, Riss was risking her life. She received no material reimbursement; indeed, she shared her food with the fugitives and spent large sums of money to buy them food and clothing on the black market. Elizabeth was made to do forced labor because of her Jewish origins, and in 1944, fearful that she, too, would be deported, again married a Chinese citizen living in Vienna in order to prevent this. The Heinrichs continued to reside in Vienna after the war. Elizabeth’s son, Felix Lee became a musician and was still living in the city in 2003where he was a member of the Jewish community. On May 15, 2005, Yad Vashem recognized Hermine Riss as Righteous Among the Nations.