Myaskovski Semyon & Myaskovskaya Yevdokia

Myaskovski, Semyon Myaskovskaya, Yevdokia Semyon Myaskovski lived in the village of Podoimitsa, (Kamenka County), in the Moldovian Autonomous Republic of the Ukraine, about 50 km from Rybnitsa. Some years before Germany invaded the Soviet Union, he was widowed and remained alone with his three children. After some time, he met and married Yevdokia, also a widow with four children, and six more children were born to them, 13 in all. The parents and their children moved to the Kotovskiy collective farm (kolkhoz). Moisei and Lea Grinshpun had lived in the same village until 1930. Moisei was a barrel maker, and was known as an expert in his trade, and his wife sewed clothes for the inhabitants of the surrounding area. They both were known and liked by many among the villagers. The Myaskovskis were among their close friends. After an earthquake took place in the area in 1930 the Grinshpun family moved to Rybnitsa. Despite the distance, the two families kept in touch, and Semyon continued to order barrels from his friend and clothes from his wife. When Rybnitsa was bombarded in August 1941, the home of the Grinshpun family was destroyed. Learning of this, Semyon Myaskovski invited his friends and their four daughters to come live in his home in the village. The Grinshpuns were in Podoimitsa when the Germans and Romanians occupied the village on August 5, 1941. After only a few days, someone informed on them. When Semyon learned about this, he took his Jewish friends to the ghetto in Rybnitsa. That same month, the Romanians murdered Moisei Grinshpun. Lea, his wife, and their four daughters continued to live in the ghetto until the end of March 1944. During that whole period, Semyon and Yevdokia maintained contact with Lea and brought them packages of food and clothing. In March 1944, when the front drew nearer, the Romanians took control of Rybnitsa from the Germans. The lives of the Jews who still remained in the ghetto were in immediate danger. Semyon thendrove with his wagon to the ghetto in Rybnitsa, managed to get Lea and her children out, and brought them all to his home. For several days, they hid inside a large barrel in the cellar of his home until the liberation of Podoimitsa on March 30, 1944. Contact between the Myaskovski family and their children and the Grinshpun daughters was maintained throughout all the years thereafter. On July 6, 2003, Yad Vashem recognized Semyon and Yevdokia Myaskovski as Righteous Among the Nations.