JEWISH WORLD

16 JEWISH WORLD • APRIL 12-18, 2024 By DEBBIE TUMA I had heard about the new Holo- caust movie, Irena’s Vow , which is being shown at theaters around the country only on April 15 and 16, but I didn’t expect it to have the impact on me that it did. Seeing the preview premiere at the Mar- lene Meyerson JCC on Manhat- tan’s West Side, on March 26, I ‘Irena’s Vow’: An Angel In Poland was awestruck watching the mirac- ulous story of how my step-grand- mother, Irena Gut Opdyke, risked her life to save 13 Jewish men and women and a baby from the Nazis in Poland. Irena was a 19-year-old Polish Catholic nursing student in Radom, in Eastern Poland, when Germany de- feated the Poles in September 27, 1939. A beautiful blonde woman, she was taken by the Germans and forced to work in a munitions factory, where she was overcome one day by fumes. She caught the eye of a Ger- man officer, Major Edward Rüge- mer. Rugemer arranged for her to work as a waitress in the officer’s dining room, and eventually as his housekeeper in his private villa. It was during this time that Irena oversaw a staff of 13 Jewish men and women, including some married couples, who did the sewing, cook- ing and laundry.At this time, the Ger- mans were preparing to liquidate all the Jews in the Tarnopol Ghetto near- by. One day when Irena was in the marketplace, she witnessed the kill- ing of Jews, including a baby, and at that point she made a vow to save her staff. The only place she could think of to hide them was in the basement of Major Rügemer’s house, where she thought no one would think to look for them. The movie, written by Dan Gor- don, goes on to depict the unbeliev- able strength, courage and persever- ance it took for Irena to hide these people for over a year, and the lies, tricks, and imagination it took for her to sustain it. From procuring food from the major’s dinner parties to moving it to and from the hiding place, dealing with unexpected raids and even a newborn baby among the Jews she protected, Irena’s actions create suspenseful moments that will have viewers on the edge of their seats. Canadian actress Sophie Nélisse, who plays Irena, is perfect for the role, what with the innocent, vulnerable ex- pressions in her sensitive blue eyes. Dougray Scott was highly believable in his portrayal of the tough-but-love- smitten Major Rügemer. And the Pol- ish actor Maciej Nawrocki is perfectly cold-blooded and unfeeling as the ruthless, rabidly antisemitic Sturm- bannführer Rokita. Director Louise Archambault does an excellent job ensuring that audiences will watch the film with rapt attention. As the war winds down, Irena fi- nally manages to smuggle her staff of 13, plus the baby, out into a forest and to safety. She winds up in a So- viet prison, until one of her Jewish staff got her out and she was sent to a German displaced persons camp, where she met my grandfather, Wil- liam K. Opdyke, who was working for the United Nations. He was able to get her released with a special ID. I rena started looking for her par- ents and four sisters, to no avail. She took a boat to New York City, with no sponsor, no money, and speaking no English, only Polish and some Yiddish. Her Jewish friends in New York helped her get a job in the garment district for about five years. One day she went as a tourist to see the Unit- ed Nations building when it opened and ran into my grandfather once again in the restaurant. They started dating and got married six weeks later, moved to California, and had a daughter, Jeannie. Years later, Irena was miraculously reunited with her three sisters in Poland after she ran into one of them in a store. Irena never talked about her war ex- periences until one day a student called asking if the Holocaust really hap- pened. Infuriated, she started visiting schools and synagogues to tell her story, and made it her mission to edu- cate young people. In 1982, she was recognized and honored by Yad Vashem as one of the Polish Righ- teous Among the Nations. Since Irina’s death in 2003, her daughter, Jeannie Opdyke Smith, has The film’s protagonist, memorably portrayed by Sophie Nélisse, is a young Polish woman who rescues 13 Jews during WW II. The true story of a young woman who saved thirteen Jews FILM REVIEW