Fosstvedt Ingebjorg

Sletten-Fosstvedt, Ingebjorg Ingebjorg (Inge) Sletten was a member of the Norwegian underground and one of the driving forces in the rescue of Jews. Her role in saving Jews came to light during the Eichmann Trial, with the testimony of Henrietta Samuel, widow of the late Chief Rabbi of Norway, Julius Samuel. The Samuels, originally from Berlin, lived in Norway since 1930. In her testimony, Mrs. Samuel recalled that Sletten was responsible for saving her life and the lives of other members of her family. She mentioned also that Sletten was in charge of the refugee children from Vienna who were placed in an orphanage in Oslo. Hearing one day that they might be deported to eastern Europe, she smuggled 14 of them to Sweden. According to Mrs. Samuel, her husband and other Jews were detained in the Grini concentration camp near Oslo on September 2, 1942. On November 21, 1942, Sletten, her 25-year-old neighbor, informed Mrs. Samuel that he was no longer in Norway, but had been deported the previous day to Germany on the ship Monte Rosa, together with 18 other prisoners. A few days later, during the night of November 25-26, Sletten phoned her saying: “ It is a very cold night, I suggest you tuck in your children carefully.” Mrs. Samuel understood the message, woke up her three young children and dressed them in warm clothes. An hour later, Sletten showed up and took the four of them plus Mrs. Samuel’s sister-in-law and her two children to the house of one of her friends. As there was a danger that the children of the host family might accidentally disclose the fact that they were harboring two Jewish families, Sletten was determined to protect them and took the two women and five children to an empty villa near Oslo. Every day she came by or sent friends to the house, to bring food and clothing. Eight days passed at the villa, and in the meantime, plans were being made to leave the country clandestinely. Finally, during the night of December 3-4 1942, Mrs. Samuel andher family joined a group of Jews heading towards the Swedish border. On a cold winter night, the 40 people were squeezed together in two trucks. Formally, the trucks contained potatoes and the people under the covers had to be very quiet; the children were given sleeping pills. The last part of the way had to be traversed on foot, in frigid temperature. But the mission was completed successfully and they arrived in Sweden. In 1943, when Sletten felt that she was being watched by the Gestapo she escaped to Sweden. After the war, Sletten married Mr. Fosstvedt, a former member of the Norwegian underground and they both became teachers in a high school in Oslo. On April 4, 1967, Yad Vashem recognized Ingebjork Sletten-Fosstvedt as Righteous Among the Nations.