With the start of the Jewish New Year, ATZUM held an event for Righteous Among the Nations living in Israel. Originally from Russia, Ukraine, Poland and Holland, the group of rescuers gathered together on a beautiful day in September in Haifa. The gathering was an opportunity for the rescuers to see each other and enjoy a day out — both rare commodities. With hopes that as many people as possible could benefit from the gathering, ATZUM chose to hold the meeting at Café Greg. Café Greg is located adjacent to the community center in Haifa’s Neve Yosef neighborhood. This particular branch of Café Greg is run by at risk teens, where all profits are donated to the community. (To learn more about the initiative click here.) The gathering of Righteous Among the Nations with such heroic pasts, meeting in a place striving to provide a better future for Israel’s youth, was very powerful for all involved.

The day concluded with songs led by volunteer singer Ritasue Charlestein. She and the rescuers sang together from sheets of Hebrew and transliterated Russian lyrics. The group finished by singing together “Yerushalyim Shel Zahav” – Jerusalem of Gold.

As the Righteous Among the Nations grow older, we at ATZUM are mournfully attending more funerals of these heroic individuals. The funerals, often unattended by non-family members, are a last chance to honor the individual and try to bring comfort and support to their families.

In March ATZUM staff attended two funerals. The funerals were entirely different but during both we parted from remarkable women, brought to rest in a special plot for Righteous Among the Nations and their spouses in Tel-Aviv’s Kiryat Shaul Cemetery.

The first funeral was of Shura Gordon z”l, the Jewish spouse of rescuer Valentin Avdenko, from Holon. Shura was an amazing woman, always with a big smile and much warmth. Her funeral was attended by a small group of family. As the majority of the family does not speak Hebrew, Raya Luvitch, ATZUM’s Russian-speaking staff member, was able to translate and help with the arrangements concerning for the funeral. Raya also gave the only eulogy at the funeral, speaking of Shura’s great capacities for warmth, giving and love.

The second funeral, a few days later, was that of Righteous Among the Nations Irena Landau (nee’ Jankiewicz). During the War, Irena, then a young Polish woman of 22, left her parents and siblings and shaped her life around saving Jews. She got a job in a beer factory, making sure her income could support the group of Jews she was helping. After work, at night, she would sneak into the forest with food and other necessities for the Jews under her care, a group that grew rapidly after news of her actions spread. One of these Jews was Jozef Czarny who eventually reached Irena’s care after escaping from Treblinka (Czarny was to become a lead witness in the Demjanjuk trials). During the winters, Irena would find hiding places in different areas, often paying people to shelter the Jews. She would smuggle her people to the hiding places one at a time, under great danger, managing to save a 15 Jews.

Rabbi Levi Lauer, Founding Executive Director of ATZUM, officiated at the funeral. It was very important to the family Irena be buried in a Jewish ceremony, as she cast her lot with the Jewish people not only during the war but throughout her life. Irena married Aharon Landau, one of the Jews she rescued and had three children together. Together with Aharon’s son from his first marriage, whom Irena saved as well (Aharon’s first wife and one of his two sons were killed during the war), the Landau family realized their dream of moving to Israel in 1957.

In addition to the eulogies by family members and ATZUM staff honoring Irena’s heroic actions, love for her husband and modesty, a daughter of one of Irena’s survivors spoke as well. How moving it was to see the people who are alive, whose children are alive, due to the actions of Irena Landau z”l.