October 1, 2015

Over and Above What Most Would Have Done

With the surprise raid by the German military police one thing was certain:  Rywka and Faye had to find another hiding place.  Mr. Puszkiewicz had a daughter, Czesława, who was working in Germany.  Knowing he had to be careful enlisting his daughter's help Anton devised a code to ask her to find safe employment for Rywka and Faye.  Within a short period of time Czesława found a German couple who needed housekeeping help.

It worked like a charm:  Czesława found an invalid who traveled to Poland to bring Rywka and Faye to Germany and their new position; they traveled to Germany without difficulty and began their new job; that is, until Faye scorched the shirt belonging to the head of the household.  They were fired and were back at square one - 'Polish laborers' in Germany without a job and no means of support.  A trip to the Labor Office resulted in a placements at a nearby sugar beet farm.

Workers on the farm included POWs from various countries and the work on the farm was demanding.  Eventually Rywka, who could not keep up with Faye or the other laborers, was able to be transferred out of the fields to inside work with potatoes.  

But the danger of discovery was never too far away.  One woman and her daughter who shared a room with Faye and Rywka went as far as to accuse them of not being Poles, but Jews.  She never had a chance to make her charges public, because Faye, who had become friendly with a guard in her building, told the guard that their room companion was saying terrible things about her and her mother.  When she explained the woman accused them of being Jews, Faye tearfully asked the guard to make her stop saying such terrible things.  The guard intervened and shortly afterwards the woman and her child disappeared.  

And then Anton Puszkiewicz gave them their greatest gift.  Unexpectedly, a package arrived for Rywka.  It was from Anton.  Inside was a letter and a photo of a dead woman.  In sorrowful language Anton informed Rywka that "their" close relative (mother?) had died and he apologized that he could not wait for her to return home for the burial.  He felt terrible that Rywka could not say her proper good byes and hoped she would forgive him.  According to Faye, Rywka carried the letter with her, shed many tears over the loss of a loved one, and demonstrated in a very convincing way that indeed she was a Pole.  Anton Puszkiewicz, without being asked, had found a way to provide Rywka and Faye with the most convincing cover story for their Polish identities.