In Memory of Anton Puszkiewicz: One of the Righteous

September 21, 2015

'Napkin Notes' by Mike Smith, November, 2010

In Memory of Anton Puszkiewicz:

One of the Righteous

In November, 2010 while sitting at our cousin Faye's breakfast table she shared a story of one of her hiding places during World War II.  The napkin above shows the basic information that led us to Skępe in April, 2014 in search of any of the farmer Puszkiewicz's surviving family.  Two months after our visit Helena Kowaleska, Anton's only surviving child, was found in Rypin by Bernard Wegner.  Not long after this contact with Helena we began to assemble the research we had collected and submitted an application to Yad Vashem for recognition of Anton Puszkiewicz as one of the 'Righteous'.  The following is an account of that process and the events surrounding his award ceremony on October 8th, 2015.

Hiding on the Puszkiewicz Farm: 1944

The facts are simple and straightforward.  After escaping the Gostynin ghetto some two years before, Aunt Rywka and Cousin Faye (Fela) had nearly exhausted possible hideouts from the Germans.  People my aunt and uncle  knew from their years as business people in and around Skępe provided opportunities many others on the run were not afforded.  

But 1944 and the arrival of my aunt and cousin in Bogzaplac, a tiny village within the Skępe commune, was nearly their last chance.  Anton Puszkiewicz was a widower and farmer who had teen age children, one of whom was in forced labor in Germany.  Rywka's request was black and white:  "we have no where to go, will you hide the two of us?".  Anton Puszkiewicz understood the dangers and shared his unease.  Rywka understood, asked him to think about it overnight, and if he said 'no' she wanted him to end her nightmare, denying the Germans the opportunity.

The following day Mr. Puszkiewicz agreed to hide them and built a false wall in his barn for Rywka to hide in.  Faye had blond hair and could 'pass' as Polish - she would stay with the family.

The two lived on the farm (along with a partisan in hiding) for several months.  Then a knock on the door at 2 in the morning shattered their sense of safety.  German military police with a Polish translator demanded entry to the house.  Why was this night so special?  Mr. Puszkiewicz had invited Rywka into the house from the barn feeling confident that no Germans would be a threat on a Saturday night through early Sunday morning.  Rywka bathed, shared dinner with the family, and slept in the house.  

Luckily, Anton and Rywka were able to talk their way out of the confrontation, insisting Rywka was a family member visiting from Warsaw.  The German commander made it clear that when he next returned, if Rywka and Faye were still in the house without proper travel documents, he would burn the house down with everyone in it.

The close call was a warning and a reminder that discovery could happen at any moment.  The decision was made to find another safe harbor.  Our next post reveals the ingenuity and commitment Mr. Puszkiewicz displayed which led to the survival of Rywka and Faye.