Stanisław Kotowski - Instytut Pileckiego
Stanisław Kotowski was commemorated by Pilecki Institute on 4 June 2020 in Sterdyń.
He lived with his parents Ewa and Józef Kotowski, his brothers Czesław and Kazimierz, and his sisters Stanisława and Anna at a colony in Paulinów. He helped to keep the family farm, and often spent time at the Paulinów estate. Like his father, he also played the accordion, and he often played with his brother Czesław, who accompanied him on his violin. During the German occupation, Stanisław’s family, like so many others, helped the persecuted Jews. He was very familiar with the places where the survivors from the ghetto in Sterdyń were hiding, and he would take out food and straw to insulate their shelters. The Germans began to pacify Paulinów on 24 February 1943. With the soldiers drawing near, Stanisław took a cart to a nearby farm, wanting to bring back some grains from the distillery to feed the cattle. He was arrested on the road by German soldiers who were with a Jewish man, whose name Stanisław did not know, who had previously been to his house and received help. The Germans took Stanisław into the forest and shot him.