Light a Remembrance Flame - Instytut Pileckiego

On 24 March we observe the National Day of Remembrance of Poles who saved Jews during German occupation.

A year ago, in Sadowne, we inaugurated the #CalledByName project devoted to Poles who were murdered for helping Jews. A stone with a commemorative plaque was unveiled by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in front of the house of Leon, Marianna and Stefan Lubkiewicz – the family of bakers who were shot by the Germans on 13 January 1943.

The subsequent commemorations took place in Poręba-Kocęby, Skłody-Piotrowice, Ostrów Mazowiecka, Stoczek, Nur, Waniewo, and Czyżew.

In occupied Poland, any kind of help offered to Jews was punishable by death. Despite that, there were individuals who risked their own lives and the lives of their families to provide various sorts of aid – for instance, by sheltering Jews and providing them with bread. Many were killed for these kind actions. As part of the Called By Name project, we honor the victims through symbolic gestures which allow us to mark the locations connected with their fate in the public space and incorporate these local experiences into our shared historical awareness.

This year we will not be able to organize commemorative events due to the ongoing epidemic, but we are determined to remember those who took heroic actions in the face of German terror.

On 22–24 March 2020, we will be publishing the stories of the people we wish to commemorate!

We hope that during the week when we honor Poles who were killed for helping Jews during the war, the Remembrance Flames will appear not only on this page, but also on your Facebook profiles! You can light a Remembrance Flame [Płomyk pamięci] by adding a frame to your profile picture! We will post a detailed instruction on how to do it.

Join us, add your reaction and leave a comment below the posts concerning the commemorations. Let’s light a virtual Flame in remembrance!