Jaroslawa Lewicka, Israel’s last living Righteous Among the Nations, dies at 91

Jaroslawa Lewicka, the last Righteous Among the Nations living in Israel, passed away in Haifa on Tuesday night, two months before what would have been her 92nd birthday.Lewicka was born in Poland in 1935 and was raised by her mother and grandfather, Katarzyna and Alexander Levitska.She began helping them save Jews during the Holocaust at the age of six, delivering food and medicine and serving as their messenger. Because of her young age, she delivered the supplies without arousing the guards' suspicions. In 1943, her family sheltered two Jewish individuals in their home and also provided food to a group of Jews hiding in the basement of a destroyed building about two kilometers away from them.In 1989, Lewicka, Katarzyna, and Alexander were recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. In 1995, she immigrated to Israel, became an Israeli citizen, and settled in Haifa.Lewicka's life story was documented in Maya Klinger-Cohen's book, Only Red Candies.Celebrating her 91st birthday This past January, dozens of students from the Basmat School in Haifa celebrated Lewicka's 91st birthday at the Beit Gil HaZahav assisted living facility in the Kiryat Eliyahu neighborhood.The students read birthday greetings to her, sang in Hebrew and Russian in her honor, and presented her with a bouquet of flowers and a birthday cake.