The survivor, Svetlana Zmiyevskaya, at the age of four. 1940
KOVAL, Prokofiy
When the Germans invaded the Soviet Union in the summer of 1941, Polina Pakul (b. 1912) found herself caring for her mother Lyubov (b. 1887) and her 5-year-old daughter Svetlana (b. 1936) in Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine. Polina's husband and son had been drafted into the Red Army, and the Germans were drawing near. Just before the invasion of the city on 25 August, the Pakuls took the last train out of Dnipropetrovsk. They found themselves in Uchkeken, a town in the north Caucasus region. Polina found work at a local school teaching history and geography, and the three women lived among the many refugees, Jewish and other, gathered in the town.
One of the newcomers in town was Prokofiy Koval, a 60-year-old dentist from the Far Eastern town of Vladivostok. Prokofiy had been sent to a Soviet prison, but was later acquitted and sent to Uchkeken to rehabilitate. He worked at the hospital and lived in a rented room in town. During this period he and Polina became acquainted.
When the town was overrun by the Nazis in August 1942, all the Jews were required to register with the local authorities. Polina and Lyubov decided not to obey this order. Rather, they accepted an offer from Prokofiy to hide in his home. A rumor spread that Germans were not pursuing Jews from “mixed” marriages, so Polina and Prokofiy walked 16 kilometers to Kislovodsk to register their fictitious marriage. To further ensure their safety, Prokofiy dug out a hole in his room, covering it with floorboards and a wardrobe; in times of danger Polina and Lyubov hid there, while Svetlana stayed with Prokofiy above ground. Prokofiy shared his last slice of bread and potato peel with his protégées, and they remained with him until liberation in January 1944. All the Jews who had registered with the Germans were murdered in various sites around Kislovodsk.
After liberation, the Pakul family remained in Uchkeken, with Polina continuing to work as a teacher. In the fall of 1945 they returned toDnipropetrovsk to find their old home in ruins. They moved to Kharkov, where they had relatives. Polina’s husband returned from the war alive and healthy, but the couple ended up separating.
After the war Prokofiy returned to Vladivostok. He and Polina exchanged letters, but because of Polina's frequent location changes, many of the letters did not reach her.
In 1996 Svetlana immigrated to Israel. In the testimony she gave Yad Vashem she expressed how grateful she was to Prokofiy, “a noble man who today lives only in my memory.”
On 6 February 2011, Yad Vashem recognized Prokofiy Koval as Righteous Among the Nations.
Koval Prokofiy
Last Name
Koval
First Name
Prokofiy
Fate
survived
Nationality
RUSSIA
Gender
Male
Profession
DENTIST
Item ID
9024153
Recognition Date
06/02/2011
Ceremony Place
No known next of kin
Commemoration
Wall of Honor
Ceremony In Yad Vashem
No
File Number
M.31.2/11986
Rescue
Rescued Persons
Photos
Commemoration
Place During the War
Uchkeken, Malo Karachayevskiy, Ordzhonikidzevskiy Kray Karachayevskaya AO, Russia (USSR)
Place of Rescue
Uchkeken, Malo Karachayevskiy, Ordzhonikidzevskiy Kray Karachayevskaya AO, Russia (USSR)