INDIANAPOLIS —
The FBI entered a butcher shop and took young Anneliese’s father away. Her mother, Alma, struggled to keep the store open.
But after boycotts, swastikas covering the exterior and bricks shattering the windows, she shut the door forever and the family went on welfare.
Unable to reunite the family in any other way, Alma voluntarily took Anneliese and her brother and entered an internment camp on Ellis Island.
Their crime? Although they had become American citizens, she and her husband had been born German. And it was 1942.
Anneliese Krauter of Indianapolis will share her story at the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library Second Anniversary Celebration on Jan. 26, along with other German-Americans held in internment camps.
The day caps the second anniversary of the opening of the library, 340 N. Senate Ave. in Indianapolis.
The panel, from 1 to 3 p.m., consists of:
- Frances Ott Allen of Cincinnati
- Eberhard Fuhr of Palatine, Ill.
- Anneliese Krauter of Indianapolis
- Alfred Wohlpart of Oak Ridge, Tenn.
At 3 p.m., Indianapolis writer, editor and cultural strategist David Hoppe and photographer Kristin Hess of the Indiana Humanities Council will discuss the stories behind the state’s food renaissance captured in “Food for Thought: An Indiana Harvest” with Debra Des Vignes, who is Spotlight Indianapolis host.
Norb Vonnegut — related to Kurt Vonnegut — takes the stage at 4 p.m. He describes himself as being fascinated by what can go wrong with having access to money, and he has turned his years of Wall Street experience (protecting clients) into successful novels. The events are free.
Then, at 6 p.m., the Heartland Actors Repertory Theater perform a staged reading of “So It Goes, an Evening with Kurt Vonnegut,” a play by Todd Grove.
Tickets are $35, and seating is limited. Visit www.vonnegutlibrary.org or call (317) 652-1954.
The Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library is a public-benefit, nonprofit organization championing the literary, artistic and cultural contributions of the late writer, artist and Indianapolis native.
The library seeks to engage people in the written word — especially their own. The library is in the historic Emelie Building in downtown Indianapolis at 340 N. Senate Ave., thanks to the support of Katz & Korin, PC. The library is open daily except Wednesdays from noon to 5 p.m. and is closed on all major holidays. Admission is free and donations are appreciated.
