Kozak Władysław ; Sister: Apolonia

Kozak, Władysław Kozak, Apolonia Władysław Kozak and his sister, Apolonia, from the village of Swoszowa, in the Rzeszow district, were acquainted with the Feigenbaums, who lived in the nearby town of Biecz, before the war. When the Jews of Biecz were interned in the local ghetto, Władysław and Apolonia did not abandon their friends, but at great personal risk, helped the Feigenbaum couple escape from the ghetto, and sheltered them and one of their children. Two of the Feigenbaums’ sons were sent to a labor camp, from which they escaped and joined their parents and brother on the Kozaks’ farm. In risking their lives to save their friends, the Kozaks were guided by a true friendship that triumphed over adversity. The Kozaks looked after the refugees, and saw to all their needs, without expecting anything in return. In late 1943, due to the discovery of the group of eight Jewish refugees who were hiding in the area and then subsequently shot on the spot, the Feigenbaums had to abandon their place of refuge and seek shelter in the nearby forest. Even then, Władysław and Apolonia did not abandon them, but provided them with food and winter clothes, and visited them in their hiding place to offer them encouragement. In the early summer of 1944, antisemitic nationalists murdered Władysław Kozak for helping Jews. Despite the tragedy, Apolonia, continued providing the seven Feigenbaums with food, which enabled them to survive until January 1945, when the area was liberated by the Red Army. After the war, the Feigenbaums immigrated to Israel, where they carried on a correspondence with Apolonia. After her death, they kept up ties with her children, sending them medicines and money whenever they could. On September 13, 1989, Yad Vashem recognized Apolonia Kozak and her brother, Władysław, as Righteous Among the Nations.