rescuers of jews
Šukienė Sofija Eleonora
Sofija ŠUKIENĖ
Sofija Šukienė was born in Moscow in 1915 to a refugee family from Lithuania. In 1920 Sofija’s family returned to Lithuania and settled in Kaunas.
In 1936 Sofija got married and 2 years later her husband died. As a widow she lived on her own. Working in the Court of Kaunas she got acquainted with a lawyer named Nahum Diner. The Diner family lived in the Kaunas Ghetto until 1943.
In 1943 Sofija Šukienė hid Nahum Diner and his wife Magda in her house, although it was dangerous for her. Her house was located in the middle of Kaunas, near the Gestapo headquarters. Sofija had been hiding them for the entire year without anyone knowing about it. The couple were smokers and so, in order not to cause suspicions, she started smoking too.
After the war the Diner couple lived in Kaunas and they took Sofija to live with them for some time. During that period with them lived Shalom Kaplan, rescued child from Kovno Ghetto. In 1944 Sofija graduated from the nursing school and worked in the hospital in the maternity ward. In 1957 she married to Albinas Šukys. She died in 1993.
In 1945 the Diner couple moved to France and their son Alexander was born there. The couple and Sofija remained in touch and wrote letters to each other regularly. Unfortunately, the letters did not remain. In his testimony Yosef Yudelevich (born in 1928) says that lawyer Diner used to visit his family often. Yosef remembers the Diner family well. He also remembers that after the war his parents were telling him how Sofija rescued the Diner couple.
This story of rescue also told Giedrė Saladžiuvienė, Sofija’s niece. She spent her childhood living with Sofija in her house.
As well as the Kaplan-Eilati who lived with the Diner couple after the war.
Sofija Šukienė was born in Moscow in 1915 to a refugee family from Lithuania. In 1920 Sofija’s family returned to Lithuania and settled in Kaunas.
In 1936 Sofija got married and 2 years later her husband died. As a widow she lived on her own. Working in the Court of Kaunas she got acquainted with a lawyer named Nahum Diner. The Diner family lived in the Kaunas Ghetto until 1943.
In 1943 Sofija Šukienė hid Nahum Diner and his wife Magda in her house, although it was dangerous for her. Her house was located in the middle of Kaunas, near the Gestapo headquarters. Sofija had been hiding them for the entire year without anyone knowing about it. The couple were smokers and so, in order not to cause suspicions, she started smoking too.
After the war the Diner couple lived in Kaunas and they took Sofija to live with them for some time. During that period with them lived Shalom Kaplan, rescued child from Kovno Ghetto. In 1944 Sofija graduated from the nursing school and worked in the hospital in the maternity ward. In 1957 she married to Albinas Šukys. She died in 1993.
In 1945 the Diner couple moved to France and their son Alexander was born there. The couple and Sofija remained in touch and wrote letters to each other regularly. Unfortunately, the letters did not remain. In his testimony Yosef Yudelevich (born in 1928) says that lawyer Diner used to visit his family often. Yosef remembers the Diner family well. He also remembers that after the war his parents were telling him how Sofija rescued the Diner couple.
This story of rescue also told Giedrė Saladžiuvienė, Sofija’s niece. She spent her childhood living with Sofija in her house.
As well as the Kaplan-Eilati who lived with the Diner couple after the war.