a hidden child

Of the almost one million Jewish children living in Poland at the outbreak of the war, only about 5,000 survived. Most of these youngsters survived by hiding.

In the spring of 1941, Adam’s mother, a concert pianist, was on tour in far eastern Russia. When the Nazis invaded Lvov she couldn’t return home and had no way of knowing the fate of her only child whom she had left in the care of a Christian friend.

Adam’s father was also gone. With forged documents identifying him as a Catholic, he was shipped to the Eastern front in a labor unit. Both parents were now marooned in Russia, not knowing what happened to each other or to their son.

Left in Lvov, Adam was sent to live with his grandparents in Jaworow. Soon the Nazis overran the village and his grandparents were deported. Homeless, he was sent to his maternal grandparents in the Cracow ghetto. For a second time, he was in danger because the ghetto was about to be liquidated. Once again the Christian friend came to his rescue. Adam’s safety demanded strict secrecy and this friend spent the next three years hiding him as her own son.