Elżbieta Górska Passes Away
She was born in Warsaw in 1926 to an assimilated Jewish family. Her father Jerzy and her brother Piotr perished during the first months of the war. In October 1940, together with her mother Helena, she was moved into the Warsaw ghetto.
In August 1942, Helena obtained false documents for herself and for her daughter. Ela became Stanisława Matusik. Helena became Józefa Kalińska. They managed to escape from the ghetto. They headed to Bielany, to the home of Aldona Lipszyc, a high school friend of Helena's. Aldona took them in. After a few weeks, Ela was placed into a church orphanage in Częstochowa, Helena remained with Aldona until the outbreak of the Warsaw Uprising.
Ela remained in Częstochowa for more than a year. During the months that followed, she was in Warsaw, frequently changing residences, among them again hiding with Aldona Lipszyc during the Warsaw Uprising. She was twice caught by the Germans and was placed into the camp in Pruszków. She was freed with the help of Anna Margolis' aunt and ended up in Grodzisk Mazowiecki. She spent the last few months of the war back in the Częstochowa orphanage.
After the war, Elżbieta married Stefan Górski (Siom Ajzenberg). In 1962, together with her mother and her three children, she emigrated to Australia and settled in Melbourne.
In her final years, Elżbieta became active in the Courage to Care education organisation, aimed at high school students and teaching tolerance towards others with a different religion, culture and nationality. She visited schools in the Australian state of Victoria, telling her story of rescue.
In 1996, Aldona Lipszyc was posthumously honoured with the title of Righteous Among the Nations. Elżbieta never managed to make contact with others who had helped in her survival.
She celebrated her 90th birthday, surrounded by her family, a few days prior to her death.
