Meva Mikusz - The Brave Rescuer
Born: 1927
Died: Unknown
At only 15 years old, Maria “Meva” Mikusz risked her life to rescue a two-year-old Jewish girl, Inka, from the Czortkow Ghetto during World War II.
In a far corner of Poland, in a tiny town, in the midst of unimaginable horror, one young girl saved the life of another. When the distance between life and death depends on the restoration of basic humanity, courage and kindness can make all the difference. These two young Polish girls show how, when tragedy strikes, we must take those in need under our wings.
Maria Mikusz (previously Dobrucka), known as Meva (meaning “seagull” in Polish), was born in 1927 and grew up in Czortkow, a small town in the Galicia District of Poland, today part of Ukraine. Before WWII, Czortkow had a large Jewish population that lived peacefully among non-Jewish neighbors. But when the war began, Jewish people were thrown out of their homes and families torn apart.
Early in the war, Meva met a Jewish woman, Frieda Hauser, who had lost her home and was searching for shelter with her family and two-year-old daughter, Inka. The families became friends, but in March 1942 Nazi forces created the Czortkow Ghetto, forcing 6,800 Jews, including the Hausers, into crowded apartments.
On August 27, 1942, German and Ukrainian police deported Jews from the ghetto to the Belzec camp. Frieda sent a desperate message to Meva’s family, begging them to rescue Inka. At just 15, Meva was small enough to slip through a hidden window in the ghetto wall. One autumn evening, wearing a Star of David, she entered at dusk. Mr. Hauser waited with Inka, and Meva smuggled the child out past guards. If caught, they would likely have been killed, but they made it to safety.
The Dobrucka family raised Inka for the rest of the war. “Usually in the afternoons, I would spend time teaching Inka to write, read, or play the piano,” Meva later recalled. Meanwhile, atrocities intensified. On June 17, 1943, Nazi guards shot 2,000 Jews, killing 500 more over the following days.
During the 1944 siege of Czortkow, the Dobruckis survived in their basement on potatoes and goat’s milk. Inka remained hidden, never leaving her room or looking out the window. Her only reprieve was a small balcony where Meva spread blankets so she could sit unseen in the sun.
In March 1945, Frieda, somehow surviving the ghetto, appeared at the family’s door. Inka did not recognize her and at first refused to leave Meva. War that tears lives apart often forces a redefinition of “family.”
Inka ultimately rejoined her parents but remained close with Meva, her rescuer, for life. Between 1942 and 1945, the Dobruckis also helped many other Jews in Czortkow. For their bravery, they were honored as Righteous Among the Nations in 1983.
Decades later, in 2012, Inka, by then known as Isabelle, traveled to Stuttgart, Germany, to visit Mewa, who was staying with her son. They spoke at length, reflecting on the war years and how those experiences shaped their lives. Isabelle recorded interviews for a book she was writing, determined to preserve the story of “the seagull” who had protected her. “For sixty years I refused to go back to my beginnings,” she explained. “But with Mewa’s encouragement and loving voice, I realized I was no longer that scared child.”
Although separated by continents, their bond remained unbreakable, built on gratitude, respect, and the closeness that only comes from surviving something unimaginable together. Isabelle later explained she wanted her grandchildren and future generations to know about Mewa’s courage, so her story and the lesson of humanity in the darkest times would never be forgotten.
References:
“Story of Rescue - the Dobrucki Family.” Polscy Sprawiedliwi, sprawiedliwi.org.pl/en/stories-of-rescue/story-rescue-dobrucki-family.
“Under the Seagull’s Wings.” Under The Seagulls Wings, www.undertheseagullswings.pl/.
Keywords: Justice, Wartime, Courage, Generosity, Responsibility, Selflessness, Take Risks for Others, Make a Difference
Image Citation:
Private archive of Mrs. M. Maria Mikusz
Explore ARTEFFECT projects about this Unsung Hero:
Meva Mikusz Artworks