Irena Sendlerowa
| Irena Sendler | |
|---|---|
Sendler c. 1942
|
|
| Born |
Irena Krzyżanowska 15 February 1910 Otwock, Poland |
| Died | 12 May 2008 (aged 98) Warsaw, Poland |
| Occupation | Social worker, humanitarian |
| Spouse(s) | Mieczyslaw Sendler (1931–1947; divorced) Stefan Zgrzembski (1947–1959; divorced; 3 children) Mieczyslaw Sendler (1960s; divorced) |
| Parent(s) |
Stanisław Krzyżanowski Janina Krzyżanowska |
Irena Sendler (née Krzyżanowska), also referred to as Irena Sendlerowa in Poland, nom de guerre "Jolanta" (15 February 1910 – 12 May 2008), was a Polish nurse, humanitarian, and social worker who served in the Polish Underground in German-occupied Warsaw during World War II, and was head of the children's section of Żegota, the Polish Council to Aid Jews (Polish: Rada Pomocy Żydom), which was active from 1942 to 1945.
Assisted by some two dozen other Żegota members, Sendler smuggled approximately 2,500 Jewish children out of the Warsaw Ghetto and then provided them with false identity documents and shelter outside the Ghetto, saving those children from the Holocaust. With the exception of diplomats who issued visas to help Jews flee Nazi-occupied Europe, Sendler saved more Jews than any other individual during the Holocaust.
The German occupiers eventually discovered her activities and she was arrested by the Gestapo, tortured, and sentenced to death, but she managed to evade execution and survive the war. In 1965, Sendler was recognised by the State of Israel as Righteous among the Nations. Late in life, she was awarded the Order of the White Eagle, Poland's highest honour, for her wartime humanitarian efforts.
Sendler was born as Irena Krzyżanowska on 15 February 1910 in Warsaw to Dr. Stanisław Krzyżanowski, a physician, and his wife, Janina. She grew up in Otwock, a town about 15 miles southeast of Warsaw, where there was a vibrant Jewish community. Her father died in February 1917 from typhus contracted while treating patients. After his death, Jewish community leaders offered to help her mother pay for Sendler's education, though her mother declined their assistance. Sendler studied Polish literature at Warsaw University, and joined the Polish Socialist Party. She opposed the ghetto-bench system that existed at some pre-war Polish universities and defaced her grade card. As a result of this public protest, she was suspended from the University of Warsaw for three years.
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