On this day in history, on June 6, 1945, US General Lucius D. Clay signed the CARE treaty for distribution of CARE Packages in the four occupation sectors of Berlin. Until the start of the Berlin Airlift in 1948, CARE Packages made up 60 percent of all private relief delivered to Berlin. During the course of the Berlin Blockade, another 500,000 CARE Packages were airlifted into the city.

Many World War II survivors were starving. In response, the world’s largest private humanitarian relief organization was formed. CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) was to provide relief to the needy. The United States was the first nation to sign the CARE treaty. On June 21 Great Britain followed suit, and in December of that year, France joined the effort. Initially, distribution of CARE Packages to occupied Germany was prohibited, but on June 5 that ban was lifted.

CARE Package

At first, CARE distributed U.S. Army surplus parcels in Europe. These packages had been prepared for a potential invasion of Japan. Soon, Americans could purchase a CARE Package for 10 dollars and send it to family and friends in Europe. At first, a specific recipient had to be specified. When the recipient’s address was unknown, CARE would attempt to find the person. Later, packages were also sent to general target areas.

The standardized food packages consisted of meat, fats, sugar, egg powder, milk, coffee, and some sweets. Each parcel contained 40,000 calories and was to feed one person for 10 days. Later CARE Packages also included non-food items such as medicine. By 1960, when operations in West Germany ended, CARE had distributed 83,000 tons of aid in West Germany. In West Berlin, operations continued until 1962. Since my family did not have friends or relatives in the United States, we never received a CARE Package.

For a sneak peek at the first 20+ pages of my memoir, Walled-In: A West Berlin Girl’s Journey to Freedom, click “Download a free excerpt” on my home page and feel free to follow my blog about anything German: historic and current events, people, places and food.

Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.