The Letter That Connected Two Families Across an Ocean

Some stories find you when you least expect them.

In August 2017, Richard Ax was sorting through old documents his mother had pulled from her basement when he came across a letter. The letterhead read Lieber's Luggage — but not the Lieber's Luggage in Albuquerque. This one was in Cleveland, Ohio.

The letter was an affidavit. A man named Max Lieber was sponsoring Richard's grandfather, Hans (John) Ax, to escape Austria as World War II began to unfold — promising to take him in, help him land on his feet, and provide a home out of his own $75/month allowance.

Richard had never heard this story before. Who was Max Lieber?

A Cold Email, A Stunning Reply

Richard emailed a copy of the letter to Frank Fine and his wife Leslee — the owners of Lieber's Luggage here in Albuquerque — to ask if there was any connection.

Frank wrote back almost immediately:

"Richard, amazing. Was Hans Ax your grandfather? Just last week we got a call out of the blue from the grandson of Max Lieber, Gerald. He told Leslee that in 1943, Max had a fight with a partner, so he sold everything to his close friend Sam Fine — my grandfather. We may get together with Gerald in NYC next month."

The pieces started falling into place. Frank's grandfather Sam Fine had bought the original Cleveland store from Max Lieber. When Frank moved to Albuquerque in the late 1970s and decided to open his own shop, he chose the Lieber's Luggage name — it had cachet in the industry, and it was alliterative. Sam Fine eventually closed the Cleveland store around 1989, but the name lived on in New Mexico.

Dinner in New York

On September 24, 2017, they all gathered in New York City: Frank and Leslee Fine, Richard's wife, his mother, and Gerald — Max Lieber's grandson. Over dinner, they pieced together what they could of the mystery.

The best theory? Max Lieber had been deeply involved in a Cleveland Jewish refugee organization and agreed to write a sponsorship letter for someone he may not have even known personally — simply to help a man and his family get out of Europe safely.

Whether Max and Hans met at a luggage conference, crossed paths in Vienna, or were connected through a refugee network, no one knows for certain. But because of Max's generosity, Hans Ax made it to the United States. And because of a chance email in 2017, two families — separated by decades and an ocean — finally sat down together.

Why This Matters to Us

When Dustin and Felicia Boyd took over Lieber's Luggage, they inherited more than a store name. They inherited a legacy built on community, generosity, and the belief that good people look out for each other.

That's still what we're about — right here in Albuquerque.

Thank you, Max, for your generous spirit. It echoes further than you ever could have known.