Triantafillou Mihail & Persephone ; Child: Avra ; Child: Olympos ; Child: Perseus

Triantafyllou, Mihail Triantafyllou, Persefoni Triantafyllou, Avra Triantafyllou, Olympos Triantafyllou, Perseas In March 1943, theTriantafyllou family – Mihail, his wife, Persefoni, and children, Avra, Olympos and Perseas – gave refuge to Solomon and Regina Cohen and their daughter, Shelly, in Thessaloniki. The two families were friends. The Cohens had already been driven out of their home and were living in the ghetto. The Cohens were afraid to be at home during the night, so every night they went to their friends’ house, and, in the morning, escorted by Mihail’s sons they returned to the ghetto. In April 1943, as the Triantafyllou family could not bear to see their good friends sent away, they arranged for them to get new identity cards, bearing Greek Orthodox names, which helped them in their escape from the ghetto. They headed for Italian-controlled Athens, where they were given shelter by Konstantinos Kefalas* until the liberation in October 1944. The help of the Triantafyllou family – both parents and children – was motivated out of love and friendship. They never expected anything in return. They were also fully aware that they were jeopardizing their own lives for the sake of their friends. On August 25, 1988, Yad Vashem recognized Mihail and Persefoni Triantafyllou, and their children, Avra, Olympos, and Perseas as Righteous Among the Nations.