A CARD FROM THE CALENDAR - WALERIA KOZAL
“Bitte schön” – said little Antoś to the German Green Policeman as he handed him his minder’s handbag. Waleria’s heart skipped a beat with fear, as she had seven IDs for ghetto Jews in that bag. The German, however, was enchanted by the four-year-old’s perfect German and felt he could trust him. He didn’t look inside the handbag, returned it to Waleria, patted Antoś on the head, and let them go. Stop-and-searches were an everyday occurrence in wartime Warsaw, and Mrs Kozal was in danger of being exposed every day. She worked in the Warsaw ghetto, tasked with managing three buildings. This gave her the freedom of movement throughout the ghetto, as well as freedom to bring food and medicine there – and, most important of all, IDs for the Jews wanting to escape the ghetto. Apart from her help to those in the ghetto, Waleria Kozal also took care of three brothers, Antoś, Andrzej, and Aleksander, whose parents had to hide during the war because of their Jewish descent. After the liberation, the boys’ mother took them with her abroad.
