December 1, on the eve of Hanukkah, in the Pavlodar Art Museum a traveling exhibition "Evacuation in Kazakhstan: 1941-1943" was open. The exhibition was supported by Association "Mitzvah", Central State Archive of the Republic of Kazakhstan, an Archive of the President of Kazakhstan and the State Archive of the Pavlodar region. The main purpose of the exhibition is to draw attention to the events of the war, objectively assess those events and to continue their investigation. The exhibition presented dozens of copies of archival documents telling about the dramatic events - the evacuation of industrial enterprises, material valuables, and civilian population.
The meeting was attended by officials of regional and city archives of the city of Pavlodar, representatives of Bukhar Zhirau Museum, Museum of Regional Natural History, students from the Department of History of the Pavlodar University, history teachers, Pavlodar researchers V. Boltina and L.Sheveleva, archivists, and representatives of ethno-cultural associations, Members of the Jewish community.
The exhibition was opened by Yuri Ioylevich Reznikov, a member of the Pavlodar community, archivist. He spoke about the International Historical Conference on Evacuation recently held in Almaty. A.Zakharenko, Candidate of History Science, addressed the audience with appreciation for future generations. He had been researching the problems of evacuation and deportation for many years.
According to the documents, the first evacuated people started coming to the Pavlodar region on July 3, 1941. Three months later there were already 3,926 people of different nationalities: Russians, Belarusians, Jews, Poles ... They heroically worked together with the Kazakhs and did everything possible for the victory. In the early days of the war the following industrial enterprises were evacuated to Pavlodar: "Avtotraktordetal Plant " (Krasnodar), fur factory (Kiev), art casting plant (Leningrad), the central repair mechanical workshops of transport routes (Tula), sewing factory (Tula). The Pavlodar region was experiencing an acute shortage of basic necessities such as fuel, warm clothes, shoes, bread. The exhibition presented a board with the following text: "The application from Mr. Katzman to the Pavlodar Evacuation Center with the request to provide clothing and footwear to the family who had been evacuated from Ukraine." The exhibited documents were telling about the difficulties, sometimes tragic, that inevitably arise during the evacuation.
Members of our community shared their memories. Chairman of Ethno-cultural Association "Merkaz" Faina Pavlovna Svechinskaya said, "When the evacuation started my father was away from home, transporting the collective farm animals. The Nazis seized him. The rest of the family members were able to evacuate. At first they were moving in a bunker of a harvesting combine, then in a cart, then walked. On the way her brother died. Te family first accommodation was on a farm in the Rostov region, and then they evacuated further. When my mother and sister were put down from the train, Fania were given a ride by some good people. How my mother was able to find Fania later is still impossible to imagine! Then the family lived in Tashkent region on a collective farm named after Kuibyshev. There were no Russian schools there. Mom worked on the farm, Fania helped collect the cones and process cotton".
Memoirs of Hannah Meerovna Lobchenko, "In the early days of the war the Germans bombed Belarus terribly. Residents of our building were evacuating on their own. One of the neighbors had a horse. We put our few possessions on the cart, put the children. 
Adults walked. Despite the unbearable heat and bloody blisters on their feet they were walking for a few kilometers a day. At night, children were sleeping on the cart while adults were on the ground. Once, already on the territory of Ukraine they settled in a forest by the river at night. At midnight the bridge was lit up by searchlights. They saw a rider who was telling them,"The enemy is a few miles away! Immediately go!" The terrified women seized their children in panic and ran to nowhere. They did not know whether they were approaching the Nazis or the Soviet troops. What was my mother's surprise when after running a long distance, she discovered that she was holding only her son in her hands, "My God, where is little Khana? God, help me, I beg you!" And G-d heard her. She saw her neighbor holding me in her arms. With the dawn we came to a Ukrainian village. We begged for alms. People were sharing everything they could. In the nearest evacuation center they were sent to Kazakhstan - a village Kuralay of Chkalov region. They were accommodated at a house of a married couple whose only son was at the front. The food was scarce. Millet porridge was a luxury. When the hostess was cooking it in a Russian stove, the cottage was filling with a delicious smell. The smell was getting into the cells of my body. Aunt Nastya put the pot on the table and filled plates with porridge using a wooden spoon for herself and her husband. My mother and I were sitting on the box but I could not take my eyes away from the actions of the hostess. My Mom, swallowing her tears, whispered: "Khanele, kuk nit! Dos iz nit unzere! (Hanochka don’t look! This is not ours!)" However, a child could not do it! Uncle Kolya told his wife: "Nastasia, give the girl some porridge" and she filled a plate with one large wooden spoon with steaming porridge and brought it to me. Let it be never again that a spoon of cereal seemed a luxury!"
The friendship of peoples is the main point in all the memories. The war and evacuation changed people’s lives. People were dying from malnutrition, disease, and overwork. Kazakhstan has become for many people a new home which helped to escape from the military horrors. And for Jews it was a chance to escape from certain death. Jews who stayed on the occupied areas were killed. Thanks to Kazakhstan, its hospitality during the wartime. It gave shelter, food, and work. Thanks to the Kazakh people who were sharing the last with the evacuees and refugees.