The arrest of Irena Sendler
On October 20, 1943, the Gestapo knocked on Irena’s door. Someone had denounced her.
She was taken to Pawiak Prison, one of Warsaw’s most feared prisons, a place from which few prisoners returned.
She was interrogated for several days. Her tormentors wanted to obtain the names, addresses, and identities of all the people involved in the rescue of the children.
Irena kept the silence.
They then began to beat her. When the blows were not enough, they methodically broke her bones before attacking her feet.
Despite the pain, Irena did not speak.
She gave no names, no addresses, and no children.
She was sentenced to death.
An execution that never took place
Żegota could not let Irena die. The organization gathered all the money it had, a considerable sum, and then handed it over to a German guard.
The guard could accept the money and free Irena, at the risk of losing his own life. He could also keep the money without fulfilling his promise.
He took the money.
On the day of the scheduled execution, he led Irena outside. Instead of shooting her, he let her go.
German archives indicated that Irena Sendler had been executed. The Nazis believed her to be dead, but she was still alive.
She remained hidden until the end of the war. Her legs had been broken, but she had survived.
The jars found after the war
When the war ended, Irena returned to Lekarska Street. She unearthed the jars buried under the apple tree. The papers were damp, but the names were still legible.
She had a list of 2,500 rescued children. So many names, identities, and stories that now needed to be pieced together.
Irena embarked on a long search. She looked for surviving parents, family members, and relatives. Some children were reunited with their loved ones. For others, no one remained, as their families had perished in the camps.
She continued to help these children as much as she could. Yet, she remained in the shadows. She sought neither fame nor recognition and rarely spoke of what she had accomplished.
She resumed her social work, helped poor people, and led an apparently ordinary life.
For decades, few people knew who she really was.
A story rediscovered by four high school girls
In 1999, four students from Uniontown High School in Kansas were working on a school project about Holocaust heroes. They discovered a short mention of Irena Sendler:
« Irena Sendler saved 2,500 Jewish children from the Warsaw Ghetto. »
The girls found it hard to believe that someone who had accomplished such an act was almost unknown. They wanted to understand why no one was talking about her.
Their research revealed that Irena was still alive. Aged 90, she lived in Warsaw. They wrote to her, and she replied.
The students then created a play entitled « Life in a Jar ». The play was a great success and allowed Irena Sendler’s story to cross borders.
Journalists, filmmakers, and politicians then came to meet her. She received numerous distinctions and awards.
This recognition, however, did not change her attitude. She remained a modest woman, repeating:
« I’m not a hero. I just did what I had to do. »
See more on the next page
