Rescued Jewish Children
Georgijus Petrovas
Before the war, the Petrovas family – the head of the family Pavelas Petrovas, retired officer of the tsarist Russian army, his wife Eugenija (Gurvičiūtė) and their son Georgijus – lived in Tilžės Street, Šiauliai. The Petrovas family was close with Antonina Levinienė and her children Jurgis and Elena, who were living nearby in Vilniaus Street. The families would visit each other and would go together to Palanga town for summer holidays.
When Pavelas Petrovas died, his widow and mother of Georgijus Petrovas married Izaokas Rubinšteinas before the war. When the Germans occupied the country, the entire Rubinšteinas family – Izaokas Rubinšteinas, his wife Eugenija, their daughter Dina who was born just before the war, Eugenija Rubinšteinienė’s son Georgijus, and Izaokas Rubinšteinas’ parents Faivušas and Frida – were put in the Šiauliai Ghetto. Izaokas Rubinšteinas’ parents Faivušas and Frida as well as his daughter Dina fell victims to the roundup of children and old people.
From Georgijus Petrovas’ testimony dated 18 May 2005:
Immediately after the extermination of children and old people in the Šiauliai Ghetto in the autumn of 1943, my parents organised my escape from the ghetto. One night in the end of November, some people that were unfamiliar to me took me from the Frenkelis factory where I was working. I walked downtown straight to the Antonina Levinienė’s home. Before the war, Antonina Levinienė and my mother were good friends and used to visit her home quite often before I was put in the ghetto. She was already waiting for me. The next day, Antonina Levinienė took me to a small apartment near the market where I was lodged by a lonely young woman by the name of Jelizaveta if I recall correctly. She told me she was working in a kiosk in the market. I hid in that apartment for about a month. I was trying to keep out of sight. Jelizaveta would take her visitors to the kitchen, while I would hide in the room. Sometimes at night, I would go to the Levinas family to talk to their kids Jurgis and Elena who were of my age. We were friends from before the war and had spent many summer holidays in Palanga. 30 December 1943, my uncle Ivanas Petrovas came to the Levinas family from Daugavpils (Latvia). The next day we left for Daugavpils by train. I believe the coming of Ivanas Petrovas was arranged by Antonina Levinienė. She gave him my forged birth certificate, which later helped me get legal documents. During this entire period, my saviours Antanina Levinienė and Ms. Jelizaveta were exceptionally kind and sympathetic to me despite the enormous risk that I was posing to their families. From the moment I fled to the end of the war, I had no news about my parents.
After the Šiauliai Ghetto was liquidated in the summer of 1944, Izaokas Rubinšteinas and Georgijus’ mother Eugenija Rubinšteinienė were taken to the Stutthof concentration camp. Izaokas was later transferred to work in Dachau and then taken to Auschwitz where he perished. Eugenija escaped the ranks of Stutthof prisoners and was hidden by Polish farmers. After the war, she found her rescued son in Daugavpils.
When Pavelas Petrovas died, his widow and mother of Georgijus Petrovas married Izaokas Rubinšteinas before the war. When the Germans occupied the country, the entire Rubinšteinas family – Izaokas Rubinšteinas, his wife Eugenija, their daughter Dina who was born just before the war, Eugenija Rubinšteinienė’s son Georgijus, and Izaokas Rubinšteinas’ parents Faivušas and Frida – were put in the Šiauliai Ghetto. Izaokas Rubinšteinas’ parents Faivušas and Frida as well as his daughter Dina fell victims to the roundup of children and old people.
From Georgijus Petrovas’ testimony dated 18 May 2005:
Immediately after the extermination of children and old people in the Šiauliai Ghetto in the autumn of 1943, my parents organised my escape from the ghetto. One night in the end of November, some people that were unfamiliar to me took me from the Frenkelis factory where I was working. I walked downtown straight to the Antonina Levinienė’s home. Before the war, Antonina Levinienė and my mother were good friends and used to visit her home quite often before I was put in the ghetto. She was already waiting for me. The next day, Antonina Levinienė took me to a small apartment near the market where I was lodged by a lonely young woman by the name of Jelizaveta if I recall correctly. She told me she was working in a kiosk in the market. I hid in that apartment for about a month. I was trying to keep out of sight. Jelizaveta would take her visitors to the kitchen, while I would hide in the room. Sometimes at night, I would go to the Levinas family to talk to their kids Jurgis and Elena who were of my age. We were friends from before the war and had spent many summer holidays in Palanga. 30 December 1943, my uncle Ivanas Petrovas came to the Levinas family from Daugavpils (Latvia). The next day we left for Daugavpils by train. I believe the coming of Ivanas Petrovas was arranged by Antonina Levinienė. She gave him my forged birth certificate, which later helped me get legal documents. During this entire period, my saviours Antanina Levinienė and Ms. Jelizaveta were exceptionally kind and sympathetic to me despite the enormous risk that I was posing to their families. From the moment I fled to the end of the war, I had no news about my parents.
After the Šiauliai Ghetto was liquidated in the summer of 1944, Izaokas Rubinšteinas and Georgijus’ mother Eugenija Rubinšteinienė were taken to the Stutthof concentration camp. Izaokas was later transferred to work in Dachau and then taken to Auschwitz where he perished. Eugenija escaped the ranks of Stutthof prisoners and was hidden by Polish farmers. After the war, she found her rescued son in Daugavpils.