Gniewek Franciszek

Gniewek, Franciszek In 1926, while still a boy, Franciszek Gniewek began working in a sawmill that belonged to the Schipper family, in the town of Rzeszow, and became friendly with his employer’s children. After the Aktion in the ghetto in August 1942, Suzan Schipper and her two younger brothers, Akiba-Jacob and Abram (Bumek), survived. Although the sawmill was transferred to German owners, the Schipper children continued working there. After a clerk at the sawmill obtained “Aryan” documents for Akiba-Jacob, Gniewek accompanied him to Krakow, where he registered as a Pole for work in Germany. Akiba-Jacob wrote to Gniewek from Germany, urging him to persuade his brother and sister to follow in his footsteps. At great personal risk, Gniewek accompanied Akiba-Jacob’s siblings and their spouses on the first lap of their journey. Abram (Bumek) and his wife registered for work in Germany, where they survived the war, while Suzan and her husband disappeared without a trace. Even while they were in Germany, Gniewek helped the Schipper brothers by letting his address be used for correspondence between them. After the war, the Schipper brothers immigrated to Canada where they kept up contact with Gniewek who, out of loyalty to his former employer, saved their lives. On April 12, 1994, Yad Vashem recognized Franciszek Gniewek as Righteous Among the Nations.