Laskowski Mieczysław & Laskowska Jadwiga

Laskowski Mieczysław Laskowska Jadwiga Krawczykowicz Zofia Krawczykowicz Władysław Krawczykowicz Jan Krawczykowicz Zygmund Szarek-Krawczykowicz Helena In November 1942, during the liquidation of the ghetto in Brańsk (Bielsk County, Białystok District), Wełwko (later, Zeew) Alperin ran, together with his mother and brother and a group of other Jews, to the nearby forest. A few days later, German soldiers found them and murdered them all, except for Wełwko, who managed to escape once again. Alone and freezing, he arrived at the home of the Krawczykowicz family, which was living in the center of Brańsk, and asked them for shelter. The Krawczykowiczes, Zofia and her five children, aged between 13 and 21, a family of farmers, took him in gladly. The father of the family was not around as he had been taken prisoner in Germany, and the children were running the farm, although Zofia made all the decisions. Wełwko was treated well in the Krawczykowicz family; they gave him a new set of clothes, cared for his frozen feet, and allowed him to remain with them until he was fully recovered. Another family that helped Wełwko during the Holocaust was the Laskowskis, also a family of farmers. Jadwiga and Mieczysław Laskowski had eight children at home, the oldest of whom was only 11. Nonetheless, they agreed to hide Wełwko, fully aware that they were undertaking a serious risk. He hid with them for a few weeks until he went back into the forest, where he joined another group of Jews hiding there. Wełwko did not come to these families as a total stranger; they had all known him and his family since before the start of the war. He was especially well acquainted with the older sons of the Krawczykowicz family who were about the same age as he was. Also, Helena Krawczykowicz had been a classmate of Wełwko’s later wife, Zofia (later, Szoszana). During the two years that Welfko hid in the forest, the Krawczykowiczes was his base of support. He would come to their home at night to get food and warm clothing, and on occasion would also spend the night. Wełwko was not the only one aided by the Krawczykowiczes. The Brojde brothers and others from those hiding in the forest would frequent their home to receive help. On January 6, 2002, Yad Vashem recognized Zofia Krawczykowicz and her children, Władysław, Jan, Zygmund, and Helena Krawczykowicz-Szarek, as well as Mieczysław and Jadwiga Laskowski, as Righteous Among the Nations. File: 9513; 9513a