Krivoruka Anna ; Son: Julian ; Son: Vladimir

Krivoruka, Anna Krivoruka, Vladimir Krivoruka, Julian Vladimir Krivoruka lived with his wife and son, as well as his younger brother Julian (Julko) and his mother Anna in the town of Janow, in the Tarnopol district (now a part of the Ukraine). The town came under German occupation on 1 July, 1941. Its Jews immediately felt the consequences of the occupation: humiliations, forced labor and hunger. Now and again individuals or groups of Jews were rounded up on trumped-up “charges” and murdered. In the fall of 1942, the town’s Jews were ordered to move into the ghetto of the nearby town of Trembowla. The persecution continued, culminating in the ghetto’s liquidation on 2-3 June 1943. Yakov Balaban had escaped from a work camp in Zborow. After the town’s liquidation he and his wife Mina hid with a farmer in the village of Dolha, but were soon turned away. In their subsequent wanderings the Balabans reached the Krivorukas’ home, only to discover they were far from alone in seeking shelter there: in a pit, dug in the Krivorukas' cellar, were already hiding the Kahan family (Berl, Sabina, Dziunio and Arus); Joel Rubin and his son Yichya; and Clara Lazarus (née Charap). They were later joined by Shlomo Kornstein, Shua Gerie, Leib Morgenstern, and finally Namus Pohoryles and his wife Ruth (née Charap). Life in hiding was a constant challenge. Food was scarce, and at nights they would take turns sneaking out to steal food from the fields or beg from neighboring farmers. There was a constant watch; in two-hour shifts, someone was always in the attic watching for suspicious movements. If anything unusual was seen, everyone rushed back into the pit. According to the testimony of Yakov Balaban, on at least one occasion the local police were tipped off to the presence of Jews and appeared in the Krivorukas’ home. The rescuers were cruelly beaten as the police demanded to know where they were hiding Jews; from their hiding place, they could clearly hear the crying andshouting. On the night before liberation in March 1944, Yoel Rubin passed away. Yakov and Namus carried his body out of the hiding place and into a nearby river. After liberation the remaining survivors stayed in Janow for a few weeks, before moving to Zbaraz and then further westward. Of the fourteen Jews who were rescued by the Krivorukas, most immigrated to the United States or Israel. Julko’s son recalled that his family regularly received letters and packages from the survivors. On 11 October 2011 Yad Vashem recognized Vladimir Krivoruka, his brother Julian Krivoruka and their mother Anna Krivoruka as Righteous Among the Nations.