Four more names have been added to the list of Ukrainians, who saved Jews during the Holocaust
In Lviv, relatives of the four Righteous Among the Nations have received diplomas and medals from the Yad Vashem — The World Holocaust Remembrance Center. The more time passes since the Holocaust, the more difficult it is to find witnesses and document the facts of saving Jews.
By the number of the recognized Righteous Among the Nations, Ukraine currently ranks fourth in the world — 2,691 persons.
However, their real number may be several thousand more. This has been confirmed at the award ceremony by the Ambassador of Israel Michael Brodsky: “Righteous Among the Nations are the true heroes of Ukraine and Israel. According to the Israel’s Institute of National Remembrance Yad Vashem, there are currently almost 2,700 Righteous Among the Nations in Ukraine, but, of course, we all know that in reality there are many more of them.”
This time the title of the Righteous Among the Nations has been awarded to Ukrainians from four regions at once: the Komarnitskiy family from Lviv region; residents of Volyn region Ion and Irina Paholchuk; Yulia Banko from Ternopil region and Mikhail Romanitsa from Ivano-Frankivsk region.
The story of Mikhail Romanitsa can be considered illustrative. He was not familiar with the Sorger family, whom he rescued from prison in Kolomyia. His brother was shot by the Nazis along with the elder Sorgers and their two daughters for giving shelter to Jews. It is known that the younger Sonia Sorger, who survived, was later hidden at home by the Gablinsky family, as well as the families of Pastriz and Kolenkovski.
Thus, just this one example shows that there should be at least three times as many Righteous people. However, they are still absent on the Yad Vashem list. Hopefully, this is only for now.
