Lach Michał & Petronela ; Daughter: Józefa ; Daughter: Pawłowska Zofia (Lach)

Lach, Michał Lach, Petronela Pawłowska-Lach, Zofia Lach, Józefa Michał Lach and his wife, Petronela, had two daughters. The elder one, Zofia Pawłowska, was married and had a two-year-old son. The younger daughter, Józefa, was disabled and partially deaf. During the occupation, the whole family lived in the village of Babice, by the river San in the Przemysl district, and they ran a small farm. Michał had been friendly with local Jews before the war and it was therefore natural for them to turn to him to ask for food and assistance. However, it became more complicated when, in July 1942, Mendel Raps asked Michał to shelter him and a number of his compatriots who had escaped from the Przemysl ghetto. Michał and Zofia both agreed, although the family lived in poverty in a small hut. A hiding place was built in the cowshed with only enough room to sit and they could only rarely come out from it under the cover of night. After a few of those in hiding left, only Mendel Raps, his fiancée, Rozia Englard, and her younger sister, Estera Englard (later Korman), remained. When winter came, Rozia and Mendel went into the village to get some warm clothes, but were handed over to the Gestapo and shot, leaving Estera alone with no means of paying for herself. Józefa did her best to look after Estera and get her food other than potato soup. Estera was afraid not only of the Germans but also of the Ukrainians, since they collaborated with the Nazis. In order to make her feel better, Józefa also joined her in the hiding place. The Red Army liberated Babice on July 26, 1944. Michał did not want Estera to leave until she could find other members of her family or join other Jewish survivors. Estera eventually immigrated to the United States. On June 16, 1992, Yad Vashem recognized Michał Lach, his wife, Petronela Lach, and their daughters, Zofia Pawłowska-Lach and Józefa Lach, as Righteous Among the Nations.