Cheverry Georgette

Cheverry, Georgette During the occupation, Georgette Cheverry, whose husband, a physician, was taken prisoner of war and interned in Germany, lived in Paris with her young son. They were allowed to live in a small apartment in the pediatric hospital where her husband worked. The young woman, born in 1913, was a devout Catholic and taught literature in a school in Paris. She also gave private music lessons. One of her students was Odette Gartenlaub, the oldest daughter of the owner of a large jewelry store. When the jewelry store was taken from the Gartenlaubs and “Aryanized,” in accordance with the new racial laws, they had to move to another apartment. They managed to remove some jewels and other valuables and place them in Georgette Cheverry’s care. On July 15, 1943, Odette Gartenlaub, who worked for UGIF (Union Générale des Israélites de France), warned her parents that she had heard rumors that a mass arrest of Jews would take place in Paris the following night. Odette asked for Georgette’s help, and she took in her sisters, Régine (b. 1932) and Dina (b. 1937). Several days later, Cheverry moved them to her summerhouse in Charolles, a village in eastern France. After the war, the girls recalled their train journey to Charolles, accompanied by Cheverry. Although their papers were crude forgeries and easily recognizable as such, Cheverry took the risk and adhered to her rescue mission. A German officer boarded the train to check their papers. He lingered over the documents of the two little girls, who burst out in tears. He returned the documents to them, saying nothing. Once they had arrived at the village, Cheverry entrusted the girls to a couple there and returned to Paris. In March 1944, she returned to Charolles with her mother and her son, and until the end of the occupation, she looked after the girls as if they were her own. Throughout this time, Cheverry stayed in touch with the Gartenlaubs and Odette, who had remained in Paris. She also joined the Resistance. After the war, the Gartenlaub daughters remained friendly with their rescuer. Forty-five years later, Cheverry revealed that ever since the incident on the train, she had prayed every day for the well-being of the German officer who had checked their documents and pretended not to notice that they were forgeries. On October 19, 1987, Yad Vashem recognized Georgette Cheverry as Righteous Among the Nations.