Kaczmar Antonina (Ilnicka)

Kaczmar, Antonina Even before the occupation, Antonina Kaczmar was known as a kindhearted woman who was always willing to help those in trouble, and during the occupation she devoted herself to help persecuted Jews. Among those whom she helped was Robert Weisman, from the village of Salowka in the Tarnopol district, who escaped from the Julag near Jagielnica. After giving Weisman a warm welcome, Kaczmar arranged a hiding place for him in her home, where she fed him, looked after him and protected him from her Ukrainian neighbors until the Red Army liberated the area in the summer of 1944. Weisman stayed with Kaczmar until 1945, and when Kaczmar, afraid of reprisals by her Ukrainian neighbors, moved to an area within the new Polish borders, she took him with her. In time, Weisman immigrated to United States, where he kept in touch with Kaczmar and helped her financially until she passed away. On May 21, 1975, Yad Vashem recognized Antonina Kaczmar as a Righteous Among the Nations.