Narrative

Living History Narrative

On March 23rd, 2010, our group from the 8th grade class at the American School of Warsaw had the amazing opportunity to interview a survivor of the holocaust; Pan Andrzej Kazmierczak. Although there were moments when his life was at high risk, he survived. Most of this was down to luck, said Pan Kazmierczak, and being in the right place at the right time. He was born with few Jewish features which allowed him to be "Germanized". There were several events that led to his survival and even though he does not remember being in the Stutthof concentration camp, these events have changed his life immensely both physically and mentally. This is the story of a strong, independent man who has had an experience that is never to be forgotten.

August 17th 1944: Andrzej Kazmierczak was born in the Stutthof concentration camp near Gdansk. His mother was Jewish, but was baptized as a Roman Catholic. His father was a French officer with a Jewish background, who was later executed by the Nazis. Although he had dark features, he did not look Jewish and was able to be "Germanized". Shortly after his birth, Pan Kazmierczak was put in a laundry basket and hidden along with clean laundry. Pan Kazmierczak was often experimented on by Nazi doctors in Stutthof. When the Nazis attempted to produce vaccinations for smallpox and typhus, they tested them on Pan Kazmierczak. These diseases spread rapidly via lice, and were highly contagious. There was no cure for smallpox or typhus. If a person caught either of these diseases death was imminent. Luckily, the vaccinations were harmless and effective and Pan Kazmierczak was able to stay alive and healthy. Being so young, Pan Kazmierczak doesn't remember much about his dramatic life in the camp, however he has learned over the years of the atrocities that occurred there. Many people were tortured and murdered there by starvation, diseases, gas chambers, arbitrary shooting, hanging and many other ways. Cruel medical experiments were also performed there, such as altering eye color, mixing Slovak and Jewish races, and creating soap out of Jewish human bodies.

Shortly after escaping the concentration camp as an infant, Pan Kazmierczak lived with a group of German nuns until 1945, when he was informally adopted by a Polish family. The father was a documentary director so they had a comfortable and rather extravagant life. Being so young, Pan Kazmierczak had no memory whatsoever about his biological parents. He only sensed that he was adopted because his new parents were both blond haired and blue eyed and they did not look similar to him. One day, Pan Kazmierczak decided to ask his aunt a trick question, "how was it with my adoption?" His aunt told him to ask his other aunt who knew more about it. Then, it was obvious to Pan Kazmierczak that he was, in fact, adopted. However, it wasn't until the day of his father's death that Pan Kazmierczak finally plucked up the courage to ask to his father directly. Pan Kazmierczak told him how he would always be his father no matter what but he wanted to know the true story. His father told him on his deathbed and Pan Kazmierczak's life in the concentration camp was revealed. It was also around this time that Pan Kazmierczak went to boarding school where he rebelled, pulled pranks, and didn't care about education but was more interested in girls. As a consequence of this behaviour, the Catholic Church "disinvited" him to come to prayers. Although he was baptized three times (first by a priest in the concentration camp, once by the nuns who took care of him, and finally by his adoptive parents) and raised by a Catholic family, he is not a practicing Catholic because he believes that priests are hypocritical. A priest he knew was rumored to have taken money from the church for personal benefits and was caught sleeping with a prostitute. Pan Kazmierczak was shocked and lost his faith in the establishment within the Catholic Church. However, he has always believed in God and still prays a lot at both Catholic Churches and Synagogues.

When Pan Kazmierczak became an adult, he had to join the army. However, since he had a document showing how he had suffered in the concentration camp, he did not have to be involved in physically active jobs. He worked as a cameraman and sniper. After his stint in the army he was involved in secret underground operations. In 1979, he was caught for conspiring against the government, and was put in jail for a minimum sentence of ten years. Luckily, this happened during the time Karol Józef Wojtyła became Pope John Paul II and as a result of his influence, positive changes occurred in Poland, and Pan Kazmierczak was released early. Pope John Paul II, whom Pan Kazmierczak knew on a personal level, had previously confirmed him.

Despite going through such traumatic experiences, Pan Kazmierczak is now living a happy, peaceful life with a wonderful family. His wife is twenty four years younger than him and he has been married to her for approximately twenty years. He has two children, a daughter who can speak multiple languages and is finishing high school and a son who is in the army. As he shows us pictures of his wife and kids, he seems to forget about Stutthof and the Holocaust. Every two or three years, Pan Kazmierczak is invited to Germany to speak about his experience just like he had done for us. He has medical care and check-ups in German Clinics and the fees are complimentary. But even his children aren't free from his past. They too must undergo clinical treatments as a result of his DNA.

When asked what he believes is the most important thing for future generations to know about his story and the countless others that relate to him. Pan Kazmierczak's responded, "Don't forget about the tragedies that have happened in the past." He had also mentioned how this applies to not only the Holocaust but also to the different conflicts that have happened and are happening all around the world. It is important to know what the mistakes were and to never forget. People should recognize the current problems that are still present. One should be grateful for family and living a peaceful life. He told us that family is the most important thing in life, and even when you think that you have lost everything you will never loose your family. Pan Kazmierczak believes that without his family and the people around him he would have never been able to survive. "rodzina rodzina rodzina," family, family, family were the three concluding words of his incredible story.