Kraupa Jan & Józefa

Kraupa, Jan Kraupa, Józefa In the spring of 1943, Juliusz and Rosa Schapira who, together with a group of local Jews, worked on a farm in Nagorzanka in the county of Buczacz, in the Tarnopol district, became acquainted with Jan and Józefa Kraupa, a warm couple who ran a tavern in the nearby village. Once the harvest season was over, the Jewish workers on the farm realized that they were doomed, and that escape was not an option in an area riddled with antisemites. When all seemed lost, the Schapiras turned to the Kraupas who, guided by humanitarian motives, which overrode considerations of personal safety, or economic hardship, hid the refugees in one of the tavern’s guest rooms, and locked the door on them. Despite the danger, the Kraupas fed and clothed the refugees and saw to all their needs until the area was liberated in the spring of 1944. After the war, the Szapiros immigrated to the United States. On January 5, 1984, Yad Vashem recognized Józefa and Jan Kraupa as Righteous Among the Nations.