Trofimov Sergei & Trofimova Vasa ; Daughter: Kuznetzova Stepanida (Trofimova)

Trofimov, Sergej Trofimova, Vassa Kuznetzova, Stepanida Sergej Trofimov, his wife, Vassa, and their married daughter, Stepanida Kuznetzova (b. 1919) were Russian Old Believers and lived in the village of Harčiski, Latgale. One night in January 1942, Josif Rein, a young Jewish tailor from the neighboring town of Višķi, knocked on the door of their home and asked them to hide him. The Trofimovs knew Rein because he had sewn and mended clothing for the residents of the village before the war. Early in the German occupation, Rein and his family were forced to move to the ghetto established in nearby Daugavpils. After his parents and siblings were massacred, in November 1941, Rein escaped. The Trofimovs hid the Jewish tailor in the barn, near the cow, and at night they brought him into the house so that he could warm up and eat with them. Eventually, Rein was joined by Trofimovs’ long-time Jewish friend, Grisha Pogel, also from Višķi. Their rescuers were motivated by their religious faith and by the conviction that it was their duty to help others in distress. While Rein and Pogel were hiding in his home, Sergej Trofimov was elected mayor of the village, and in that capacity, since the authorities trusted him, he was able to help other people, not only Jews. After the liberation in July 1944, the two survivors returned to Daugavpils and continued to maintain friendly ties with their rescuers. On June 8, 1995, Yad Vashem recognized Sergej Trofimov, Vassa Trofimova and their daughter, Stepanida Kuznetzova, as Righteous Among the Nations.