Štefan Lujo ; Niece: Živković Ljubica

Štefan, Lujo Živković-Štefan, Ljubica Lujo Štefan, a furniture designer and owner of a furniture warehouse and shop, lived in Karlovac, about 50 km south of Zagreb. He was friendly with his neighbors, the Eisler family, owners of a grocery store in Karlovac. Hermina Eisler’s husband and son were murdered almost immediately after the Ustaša rose to power in April 1941, and in July, her married daughter and her son managed to escape with the help of an Italian doctor, Dr. Gatti* (see under Italy in separate volume). Štefan refused to leave Eisler to await her fate alone in her home and brought Eisler to his home. He then began the process of obtaining a travel permit needed for Eisler to flee the area. Štefan’s niece, 20-year-old Ljubica Štefan, who at the time was living in Štefan’s home, assisted him in his quest. Štefan took the papers of Eisler’s cook and went to the police station, where a friend of his worked. This friend provided travel permits in the name of the cook and in Ljubica’s name. Eisler, dressed as a maid, was to accompany Ljubica on an excursion to the seashore. On the day they were to leave, the Štefan family accompanied Eisler and Ljubica to the train station and watched them board the train, which was swarming with Ustaša. Eisler sat by the window with Ljubica acting as a cheerful young woman on an outing to the coast, escorted by a servant. Ljubica and Eisler reached Crikvenica, in the Italian occupied zone, and, after a short time, Eisler joined her daughter in Trieste, Italy. Ljubica returned to Karlovac and reported to the family that everything had gone according to plan. On December 29, 1992, Yad Vashem recognized Lujo Štefan and his niece, Ljubica Živković-Štefan, as Righteous Among the Nations.