Matusiewich Anna ; Child: Jan ; Child: Arcihovska Jadwiga (Matusiewich)

Matusiewich, Anna Matusiewich, Jan Arcihovska Matusiewich, , Jadviga Anna Matusiewich (b. 1885) and her children Jan (b. 1906) and Jadviga (b. 1924) a Polish family, lived on the outskirts of the town of Rēzekne, Latgale. Jan was a blacksmith and his workshop was adjacent to the house. For many years, they were friends and customers of the Izraelit brothers, who owned a store for agricultural equipment in Rēzekne. On July 3, 1941, the Germans occupied the town and during that month, most of the Jewish men living there were executed. The Matusiewiches were sure that the Izraelit brothers were among the dead, until one day Jan Matusiewich met Chaim Izraelit at the home of a friend, who had been hiding him and his 15-year-old nephew Jakov for several days, but was pressuring them to look for another place of shelter. When Jan saw their distressing circumstances, he invited the Izraelits to hide on his family’s farm. Close to the Matusiewich house, on the other side of the farmyard, there was an old, abandoned house that no one was living in, and a hiding place was prepared there for Chaim and Jakov. Jan and his mother boarded up the windows of the house, and put a large lock on the door so that from the outside it looked as if no one was inside. Every day, Anna or her daughter Jadviga would bring food and newspapers to the two Jews and would take away the pail of waste. In this way, Jakov and Chaim passed the fall and winter months of 1941, until in April 1942, the Matusiewiches were ordered to open the house for a family of Russian refugees. Overnight, the two Jews and their belongings were moved to the barn loft, and because of the curiosity of the new neighbors and their small children, who spent all of their time in the yard, it became very complicated and difficult to care for the Jewish wards. From then on, they received their food in milking pails, and during the Matusiewiches’ brief visits, they refrained from speaking to prevent anyone hearing them.On July 27, 1944, the Red Army arrived at Rēzekne and the survivors were free to leave their hiding place for the first time in three years. They were very grateful to their rescuers and maintained friendly ties with them for many years, even after Chaim died and Jakov immigrated to Israel. On September 13, 1989, Yad Vashem recognized Anna Matusiewich and her children, Jan Matusiewich and Jadviga Arcihovska, as Righteous Among the Nations.