Kossobudzka Stanisława ; Daughter: Renata

Kossobudzka, Stanisława Kossobudzka, Renata-Izabella Under the influence of a school friend, Renata-Izabella Kossobudzka made it her mission to help the Jews of Warsaw. From 1942, she turned her apartment, where she lived with her mother, Stanisława, into a temporary refuge for fugitives from the ghetto until they found permanent shelter on the Aryan side of the city. At times, there were as many as twelve refugees staying in their apartment at the same time. In addition, their apartment served as a permanent refuge for Anna Cegielska and Helena Lewkowicz, and for the Wolkenheim couple. Kossobudzka and her daughter took care of the four refugees without expecting anything in return. In risking their lives for them, they were guided by humanitarian motives, which overrode considerations of personal safety or economic hardship. In due course, Renata-Izabella found work for Cegielska as a maid. The other three refugees stayed with them until the outbreak of the Warsaw Uprising in August 1944, during which Mr. Wolkenheim lost his life. Cegielska, Lewkowicz, and Wolkenheim’s widow survived and were liberated in January 1945 by the Red Army. After the war, Lewkowicz immigrated to the United States and Mrs. Wolkenheim to Israel, while Cegielska remained in Poland. On December 3, 1992, Yad Vashem recognized Stanisława Kossobudzka and her daughter, Renata-Izabella Kossobudzka, as Righteous Among the Nations. File 5502