Michalewska Maria (Kowalska)

Michalewska, Maria After the establishment of the ghetto in her hometown Brody, in the Tarnopol district, Maria Michalewska rushed to the aid of her Jewish acquaintances, hiding Bronia Roth, an old friend from before the war, in her apartment. Due to her neighbors’ suspicions, a search was conducted of Michalewska’s apartment, but thanks to her resourcefulness and self-sacrifice, Roth was not found. After the search, Roth was forced to leave her hiding place, and with Michalewska’s active support and funding, she found a place to hide with a farmer in the nearby village of Smolanka. Despite the danger to her life, Michalewska continued to help Jewish fugitives, and using her connections with local government officials, she provided “Aryan” papers to those who needed them, without asking for or receiving anything at all in return. Michalewska also hid Dorota Taub, her sister and baby daughter in her apartment, as well as Klara Chotiner. While they were staying in her apartment, Michalewska took care of all their needs until she could find a safer place for them to hide. Everything she did to save Jews was motivated solely by her love of humanity. All those she helped were liberated by the Red Army in April 1944. After the war, they immigrated to Israel, the United States and Australia, and Michalewska, to whom they owed their lives, moved to an area within the new Polish borders. On June 16, 1964, Yad Vashem recognized Maria Michalewska as Righteous Among the Nations.