Rescuers of Jews
Levinskas Leonas
TERESĖ LEVINSKIENĖ
EDVARDAS LEVINSKAS
LILIJA VILANDAITĖ
When the local collaborators started to rob and kill the Jews – citizens of Zagare, Terese Levinskiene (Vilandaite) applied to the leadership of the region with a letter, in which she requested on behalf of all decent citizens of Zagare not to kill innocent Jews, damaging this way the dignity of theGerman people. When signing the letter, she mentioned her real name, address and also her nationality – German, because both Vilandaite sisters had been descendants of an ancient German family residing in Zagare. On the day of mass murders in Zagare – October 2, 1941, an order was issued to kill Terese together with the local Jews. It was only by accident she remained alive. Her husband Edvardas Levinskas, their son Leonas and Terese‘s sister Lilija also helped rescueJews. During the last year of the war the Levinskas family gave shelter to the wife of the farmaceutical chemist – Batya Trusfus and her granddaughter, Ruta Jofaite. After the war the Levinskas family had been exiled to Tadjikistan, since they were Germans. Both sisters died there. The son of Edvardas and Terese – Leonas Levinskas together with his wife – Zofija Kalendraite-Levinskiene, who was acknowledged as Righteous Among the Nations, continue to live in the house of their parents in Zagare, the same house, where Batya Trufus and her granddaughter found shelter during the war.
EDVARDAS LEVINSKAS
LILIJA VILANDAITĖ
When the local collaborators started to rob and kill the Jews – citizens of Zagare, Terese Levinskiene (Vilandaite) applied to the leadership of the region with a letter, in which she requested on behalf of all decent citizens of Zagare not to kill innocent Jews, damaging this way the dignity of theGerman people. When signing the letter, she mentioned her real name, address and also her nationality – German, because both Vilandaite sisters had been descendants of an ancient German family residing in Zagare. On the day of mass murders in Zagare – October 2, 1941, an order was issued to kill Terese together with the local Jews. It was only by accident she remained alive. Her husband Edvardas Levinskas, their son Leonas and Terese‘s sister Lilija also helped rescueJews. During the last year of the war the Levinskas family gave shelter to the wife of the farmaceutical chemist – Batya Trusfus and her granddaughter, Ruta Jofaite. After the war the Levinskas family had been exiled to Tadjikistan, since they were Germans. Both sisters died there. The son of Edvardas and Terese – Leonas Levinskas together with his wife – Zofija Kalendraite-Levinskiene, who was acknowledged as Righteous Among the Nations, continue to live in the house of their parents in Zagare, the same house, where Batya Trufus and her granddaughter found shelter during the war.