Eilberg Genowefa (Rudnicka)

Eilberg-Rudnicka, Genowefa Before the occupation, Genowefa Rudnicka and Markus Eilberg, who lived in Boryslaw, in the Lwow district, were neighbors and friends. When the Germans occupied the city in 1941, Rudnicka, in a daring operation, smuggled Henryk, Markus’s brother, out of the Janowska camp in Lwow. In a well-orchestrated plan, Henryk was taken back to Boryslaw, where he found shelter in an underground bunker in the nearby forest, together with Adela Zalcberg, his friend. Unfortunately, their hiding place was discovered by the Germans, and both Henryk and Adela were sent to the forced labor camp in Boryslaw, where they found Markus, already a prisoner in the camp. The two brothers, who worked as plumbers in the camp, had a permit to leave the camp to work in oil refineries on the city’s outskirts. Throughout their stay in the camp, Rudnicka saw to all their needs, without expecting anything in return. She also looked after Zalcberg’s sister, Rozka Tuchfeld, and her family, who were also interned in the camp, and provided them with food and clothes. In June 1944, as the Russians approached, the inhabitants of Boryslaw were evacuated, and the prisoners of the camp deported. Markus managed to escape the transport and hid in Rudnicka’s home until the area was liberated in August 1944. Henryk, and sisters, Zalcberg and Tuchfeld, were deported to other camps where they survived. After the war, Rudnicka converted to Judaism, and married Markus Eilberg. Zalcberg and Tuchfeld, and later the Eilbergs, immigrated to Israel, while Henryk immigrated to Argentina. On May 3, 1989, Yad Vashem recognized Genowefa Eilberg-Rudnicka as Righteous Among the Nations.