Rescuers of Jews

Stirbys Juozas

ONA STIRBIENĖ
JUOZAS STIRBYS


     After the restoration of Lithuania’s independence in the summer of 1991, David Goldstein and his wife traveled from Los Angeles, USA, to Lithuania. David visited Eržvilkas to meet the rescuers of the Goldstein family, their relatives, and to pay respects at the sites where the Jewish community of Eržvilkas, including many of the Goldstein family’s relatives, friends, and neighbors, were murdered during the summer of 1941. Together with their parents, Chaim and Menucha Goldstein, the children – three-year-old Dovydas and eight-year-old Ariel – hid throughout the war. Were it not for Chaim Goldstein’s resourcefulness, ingenuity, the family’s unwavering faith in their survival despite enduring cold, illness, and countless hardships, and the help of numerous Lithuanian farmers, the Goldstein family would have met the same tragic fate as the rest of the Eržvilkas Jewish community.
     Before the war, Chaim Goldstein traded cattle and grain in Eržvilkas and was well acquainted with many local farmers. When the Germans occupied Eržvilkas, persecution of Jews began immediately, and soon all Jews were ordered to prepare for a three-day journey to a camp. Although surrounded by police, Chaim Goldstein managed to escape with his wife and children. Initially, they hid in nearby forests, relying on farmers for food. As winter set in, they sought shelter on farms, frequently changing locations and hiding both as a family and separately.
     While some of the Goldstein family’s rescuers were honored earlier with the Life Saviour’s Cross Award, during the 2024 ceremony, additional farmers from the Eržvilkas area who aided the Goldsteins were recognized, including Juozas and Ona Stirbiai, who lived with their four children in the village of Stirbaičiai in the Tauragė district.

From the memories of Ona Rūkienė, the daughter of Juozas and Ona Stirbiai:
     At first, the Goldsteins’ older son Ariel came to live with us. We called him by a Lithuanian name at the time, though I don’t remember what it was. Soon after, the rest of the family joined us: Chaim and Basia (Menucha) Goldstein, their son Dovydėlis, and Mrs. Goldstein’s sister. Little Dovydėlis wore a girl’s clothes and was called Albina at the time. He was a beautiful child with curly hair, and everyone thought he was a girl –it was safer for us that way. They lived with us for several months until they found a permanent, safer hiding place. We couldn’t make such a hideout on our farm. When they left, they still left Dovydėlis-Albina with us for a while, perhaps because the conditions were better for a small child here. I remember they were a very intelligent family. Dovydėlis played the role of a girl very well, and the children were very well-behaved. Chaim Goldstein was a devoted protector of his family. I am happy from the bottom of my heart that they endured such immense suffering and that God blessed Chaim’s efforts, allowing them to reach America.

     After the war, the Goldsteins emigrated to the United States and settled in Los Angeles. While living in the U.S., Chaim Goldstein compiled a list of his rescuers, including many individuals who helped the family survive. Among them were Juozas and Ona Stirbiai, who lived in the village of Stirbaičiai in Gaurė district, Tauragė county. Many residents of Eržvilkas and the surrounding villages remember the Goldstein family. In 1991, a large group of rescuers and their descendants gathered to meet Dovid Goldstein, Chaim's son, during his visit.

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