Krzemińska Cecylia

Krzemińska, Cecylia Mila Szykman was born in 1932, the fifth child in a warm and loving family in Chorzów, Poland. They later moved to Będzin, and in 1938 a young Polish woman named Cecylia Krzemińska came to work in their household. When the war began, various restrictive laws were issued against Jews, including a prohibition against hiring non-Jews in any capacity, which meant that Cecylia was no longer able to remain in their employ. She was faithful to them, however, and found a solution by settling in lodgings nearby, which enabled her to bring them food unnoticed. When the ghetto was established, the elder Szykman daughters and their mother were taken away, ostensibly for work, leaving the father with two older sons and two small children, Idek and Mila. Cecylia suggested that she would take Mila and care for her, but Szykman refused. For a while the Szykmans managed to stay together in a bunker they built. However, Mr. Szykman and his two older sons were soon captured and sent away as well. Idek and Mila remained alone. Cecylia appeared immediately and took them with her. She tried to find a place for Idek with another Polish family, but unfortunately someone denounced him and he disappeared, which came as the hardest trial of the war thus far for Mila, who was very attached to her brother. Mila stayed with Cecylia, hiding in the bunker or the attic while the young woman was out working. The house was close enough to the ghetto that the 8-year-old could see inside from her attic, and she witnessed the terrors of deportations and mass executions. One day Germans came to search the house—including the basement, where all they found were barrels of pickled cabbage. They went on their way, and Mila, who was sitting in one of the barrels, survived. It was obvious, however, that someone had reported them. It was time to find a new hideout. Cecylia located a family of farmers who agreed to hire the girl for room and board. They worked her very hard, so she ran away and returned to Cecylia, who found her another place. Here, Mila fell ill with typhus. The owner of the house wanted to drive her out, but her kindhearted husband, whose name is unknown, put her in a hidden corner in the barn and fed her a little until she felt strong enough to once again return to Cecylia. This happened in early 1945, and heavy fighting began in the area. It was a scary and difficult time, but happily, it ended in liberation. After that Cecylia dedicated herself to Mila’s education, moving with her to a different area where it was easier to get an apartment and send the child to a good school. Mila loved Cecylia as her mother, and when a relative found her, she did not want to be parted from her. He told her, however, that a sister of hers, Chana, had survived as well, and eventually they reunited and went to live in Canada, from where Mila always stayed in touch with Cecylia. On May 27, 2013, Yad Vashem recognized Cecylia Krzemińska as Righteous Among the Nations.