Bereska Helena

Bereska, Helena Shortly after the German occupation of Poland, Israel Kerner escaped from Krakow to the Soviet-occupied zone, leaving behind his wife and daughter, Beata, who had been born in 1938. Despite the war and occupation, Helena Bereska, who was employed by the Kerners as a domestic helper, refused to abandon the mother and infant. When the Jews of Krakow were ordered to move into the ghetto, Helena offered to transfer the Kerners to her brother’s home on the Aryan side of the city and pass them off as Poles. Shortly afterward, however, due to the threats of the brother and his family who suspected the true identity of their tenants, Helena and her protégés were forced to seek an alternative refuge. With calm determination, Helena succeeded in finding a place first of all in Krakow, and then in nearby Wieliczka. She also traveled to Warsaw in 1941, in order to bring Israel Kerner, who had attempted to rejoin his family, back to his wife and daughter. The Kerners were subsequently incarcerated in the Wieliczka ghetto together with Helena, who refused to leave them. Israel and his wife perished during the liquidation of the ghetto, but Helena managed to escape with Beata in her arms. After many trials and tribulations, the two reached a village near Krosno, where they remained until the area was liberated by the Red Army. After their return to Krakow, Beata remained with Helena until 1950, when she was traced by an aunt who brought her to Israel. Helena’s actions were wholly altruistic, the motivating factors being loyalty to her employers and unshakeable love for her fellow human beings. In 1973, Beata hosted Helena in her home in Israel. On May 17, 1973, Yad Vashem recognized Helena Bereska as Righteous Among the Nations.