Parkasiewicz Józef & Ewa ; Daughter: Laba Józefa

Parkasiewicz, Józef Parkasiewicz, Ewa Laba-Parkasiewicz, Józefa During the Nazi occupation, Józef and Ewa Parkasiewicz and their daughter Józefa lived in the small town of Sadowa Wisznia, near Lwow. Their neighbors were Jews and the two families were friendly. In October 1942, during an anti-Jewish Aktion, young Paulina (later Fruchtman) fled her home and found shelter with her neighbors, the Parkasiewiczes. Józef, Ewa, and fifteen-year-old Józefa welcomed the girl into their home warmly, despite being aware that they were risking their lives in so doing. In October 1943, the Ukrainian police entered the Parkasiewiczes’ home during a search for stolen goods. Paulina managed to escape and hide nearby, but she was discovered and detained. Under interrogation, she insisted that she was passing through the area by chance and that she had no connection to the Parkasiewiczes, on whose land she had hidden. Paulina later escaped again. She roamed the streets for several days and then returned to the Parkasiewiczes. They welcomed her into their home but felt that it was simply too dangerous for her to remain there. Thus, with the assistance of a neighbor, Konomacki, the Parkasiewiczes located a new shelter for the Jewish girl with the Zdobylak family who lived in a nearby forest and were already harboring five Jews. Paulina was the only member of her family to survive the war. After the war, Paulina moved to Israel, from where she maintained contact with Józefa Laba and sent her gifts and packages in gratitude for her altruistic help during the war. On September 6, 1984, Yad Vashem recognized Józef Parkasiewicz, his wife, Ewa Parkasiewicz, and their daughter, Józefa Laba, as Righteous Among the Nations.