Mitrofanov Aleksandr & Mitrofanova Vera

Mitrofanov, Aleksandr Mitrofanova, Vera Anishchuk, Boris Anishchuk, Yevgeniya Aleksandr Mitrofanov and his wife, Vera, lived in Zhitomir (today Zhytomyr), which the Germans conquered on July 9, 1941. One day in spring 1942, a child knocked on the door of their home and begged for food. Mitrofanova took pity on the boy, who was dressed in rags and looked ill, and invited him into her home. The boy told the Mitrofanovs that his name was Viktor Berezin and that he had been wandering around since the Germans invaded his hometown of Kiev. Berezin openly admitted that his father was Russian and his mother was Jewish but that his father had left home when he was just a baby. The Mitrofanovs offered to shelter Berezin in their home and introduced him to their only son, who was Berezin’s age. The Mitrofanovs told their neighbors that Berezin was Aleksandr’s nephew who had come to visit and he stayed with the family for over six months. During this time, the Mitrofanovs did their utmost to help Berezin recuperate. However, during his time wandering, Berezin had become seriously weak and despite the loving care he received, he fell ill with tuberculosis in December 1942. As Berezin was gravely ill, Mitrofanov decided to take the child to Boris Anishchuk, a relative and a doctor, who lived with his wife, Yevgeniya, in the town of Rokitno, district of Równe, Wołyń (Rokytne, Rivne District). Anishchuk treated Berezin until he recovered. After spending a few weeks confined to his bed, one day Berezin decided to go out to the Anishchuks’ yard. That day, in April 1943, the Anishchuks’ neighbors noticed the Jewish boy and so the Anishchuks decided to move him to the home of friends, where three Jewish men were already hiding in the basement. When Berezin heard this plan, he ran away from the doctor’s home and he later explained that he was terrified when he heard that he was to hide in a small, enclosed shelter. Berezin wandered around the villages and lived on handoutsuntil the liberation of the area, in January 1944. After the liberation, he returned to Kiev, where he was reunited with his mother. Berezin maintained his friendship with his wartime rescuers for many years thereafter. On December 6, 1999, Yad Vashem recognized Aleksandr and Vera Mitrofanov, and Boris and Yevgeniya Anishchuk, as Righteous Among the Nations.