103 New Polish Righteous in 2018

Mateusz Szczepaniak / English translation: Andrew Rajcher, 31st December 2018

In 2018, more Poles were honoured with the title of Righteous Among the Nations. These were Poles who, during the Holocaust, extended help to Jews. During ceremonies held in both Poland and Israel, these new Righteous and their descendants accepted medals and certificates presented to them by the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem. Holocaust Survivors also took part in these ceremonies. This summary of 2018 lists the year's ceremonies, presents the names of those honoured with the title of Righteous and tells the stories of these honoured Polish men and women.

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“We must fight for tolerance every day. It is a long processs. Education which counteracts racism, xenophobia and antisemitism should be our common path. In this way, we model ourselves on the Righteous Among the Nations”

– Anna Azari, the Israeli Ambassador to Poland.

In 2018, fourteen ceremonies took place, in both Poland and Israel, during which the title of Righteous Among the Nations was presented to one hundred and three Poles. This is the highest civil honour awarded by the State of Israel. Amongst those who were honoured posthumously was Franciszek Grabowicz, whose family was located in 2016 thanks to support from the Historical Information Centre of the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, as well as Marian Krycia and Wiktor and Józefa Kotowicz, who received their titles back in 1979, but were unable to be located at that time. With the help of the POLIN Museum, their families learned about the honour thirty nine years later.

Of the 54 Polish women and 49 Polish men, 30 of them helped Jews in what is now the Mazowieckie Province, 22 in the Małopolskie Province, 8 in the Lubelskie Province, 6 in the Śląskie Province, 4 in the Wielkopolskie Province, 3 in the Podkarpackie Province, 2 in the Świętokrzyskie Province and 1 in the Łódzkie Province. 21 live in what is now Ukraine (17 Lviv region, 2 in the Wołyński region and 2 in the Tarnopolski region), as well as 4 within the borders of Belarus (3 in the Brest region and 1 in the Grodno region)*. According to available source material, around one hundred Jews were helped, however the exact number is difficult to determine.

In Jerusalem, Mitch Goldhar, the son of a Holocaust survivor, said: “Today, it is very important to acknowledge and honour these highest deeds of goodwill and human decency which constitute an antidote to racism”.

Where are the Righteous?

Read about the honouring of Poles who rescued Jews during the Holocaust »

In addition, seven Righteous – Aleksander, Anna, Ignacy, Maksymilian, Jaroszom and Marianna Krasnodębski, as well as Jadwiga and Leon Bukowiński – were granted Honorary Citizenship of the State of Israel. Receiving this honour in Lublin, Mariannna Krasnodębska said, “The are no winners in any war because, for every death, there is a pain which never goes away”.

Below is a summary of the year just passing.

2018 Righteous Ceremonies

Read the reports of these ceremonies honouring the Polish Righteous:

15th January at the Royal Castle in Warsaw
22nd January at the Institute of European Culture in Gnieźno
29nd January at the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem
28th June at the Farys Cinema in czerwca w Kinie Farys w Biecz
29th June at the Galicia Jewish Museum in Kraków
2nd August at the Polish Security Printing Works in Warsaw
23nd August at the Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw
29th August at the Municipal Offices in Słupsk
30th August at the European Solidarity Centre in Gdańsk
11th October at the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem
22nd October at the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem
8th November at the White Stork Synagogue in Wrocław
28th November at POLIN Museum of the History of Polsh Jews
18th December at the “Brama Grodzka – Teatr NN” Centre in Lublin

The 2018 Polish Righteous

Read the stories of the Polish men and women honoured with the title of Righteous:

Information about the granting, by the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem, of the title of Righteous Among the Nations can be found on our website: Yad Vashem Criteria.