Sygnatowicz Karol ; Sister: Franciszka

SYGNATOWICZ, KAROL SYGNATOWICZ, FRANCISZKA During the war, Karol Sygnatowicz and his sister Franciszka lived in the town of Krowinka (in the district of Trembowla in Eastern Galicia). One day in February 1942, Karol knocked on the door of a Jewish family, the Szrentzels, from the neighboring village of Mikulince. He offered them some food in exchange for clothes, which he needed badly. Two weeks later, Clara and Jachcia Szrentzel, along with their mother, fled Mikulince and went to the town of Trembowla, where they had relatives. One day, Clara left the ghetto without the Jewish armband to buy groceries. Suddenly, somebody stopped her. It was Karol, who asked if she would prefer to live with him and his sister. Clara refused but suggested that he take Jachcia to his home. Six weeks later, when the situation in the ghetto improved, Jachcia returned to live with her family. In the spring of 1943, Clara left the ghetto in a group of eighteen people. They took cover in a bunker in a nearby forest. One day the bunker was discovered and Clara was the only one to escape. She joined another group of Jews hiding in the forest. Karol found out where Clara was hiding and brought food for her and her companions. After that, Clara and seven of her companions accepted Karol’s invitation to take shelter in his home. In October 1943, as winter approached, Clara and the seven others moved in to his home. Karol and Franciszka took care of all of their needs. They stayed there until liberation in March 1944. Clara (later Reich) gave the names of four of the other Jews who were hiding with her: Izydor Zeiler, Anna Reiner, Moshe Halpern, and Rozia Miller. In 1949, Clara Reich immigrated to the United States. On February 27, 1991, Yad Vashem recognized Karol Sygnatowicz and his sister, Franciszka Sygnatowicz, as Righteous Among the Nations.