Joris Denise

Joris, Denise Alexander Pollak's father worked as a chemical engineer at the Mobil Oil Company Refinery in the city of Bosanski Brod, between Zagreb and Belgrade. With the establishment of the Independent State of Croatia under the fascist Ustaša in April 1941, the regime nationalized the refinery and sent Alexander's father to the Jasenovac camp. It was only a matter of time before they took the rest of the family. Denise Joris was a friend of Alexander's mother and she asked her husband to help. He was the accountant at the refinery picked up the family from their address. He obtained papers for them that allowed them to reach a zone under Italian control. In September 1943, after Italy surrendered to the Allies and the Germans entered this zone, the Germans captured Alexander’s mother and she was never heard from again. Denise Joris, who was in constant contact with the family, arrived where they were staying in order to help them. She took Alexander to hide in a monastery and remained in contact with him. There was another Jewish boy, Reuven Kraus, in the monastery. The two boys were safe in the monastery whereas Alexander's sister remained alone. Denise Joris took her to her home in Zagreb, and she remained with Denise until the end of the war. On October 30, 2005, Yad Vashem recognized Denise Joris as Righteous Among the Nations.