Biały Kazimierz & Biała Janina (Godlewska)

Biały, Kazimierz Biała, Janina In November 1942, during the liquidation of the Ciechanowiec ghetto in the Białystok district, a number of Jews succeeded in escaping deportation to the Treblinka death camp. Among their number was Estera Klejnot. After days of wandering in the fields, Estera arrived in Boguty Milczki, a remote village in the Lomza district, in a state of utter exhaustion. She turned for assistance to Kazimierz and Janina Biały, impoverished farmers with a five-year-old daughter, Jadwiga. Ignoring the risk of discovery, the Bialys took in Estera, fed her, and hid her in a barn. Shortly thereafter, another Jewish woman by the name of Chazan came to the house with her two sons, aged 12 and 9, and her five-year-old daughter. Chazan’s late husband had frequently bought farm produce from the Białys, and although the families had not been on good terms, Kazimierz and Janina took in the Chazan family without requesting any recompense. One day, Mrs. Chazan went with her eldest son to a nearby village, where they were denounced and killed by one of the residents. The younger children remained with the Białys for a further eight months, and were cared for with sympathy and warmth. Arye Chazan subsequently testified: “They scarcely had food for themselves, but nevertheless they gave us bread and a little soup in the evenings. I remember them as angels, devout people who loved their fellow men. They always said that history would not forgive our murderers.” From time to time, when the danger became acute, Kazimierz and Janina hid the children with the Stokowski* family, farmers who lived in the same village. The Stokowskis paid for their generosity with their lives: neighbors set their house on fire and murdered them. The Bialys also gave food and clothing to other Jews who came to their house. Their motives were purely humanitarian, and they asked for nothing in return. Mrs. Chazan’s sons and Estera Klejnot survived the war and continued tocorrespond with the Białys’ daughter after her parents had passed away. On February 11, 1991, Yad Vashem recognized Kazimierz Biały and his wife Janina Biała as Righteous Among the Nations. File 4534