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Monday 9 May 2011

The Prize Doesn't Always Go To The Most Deserving ....

In 2008 there occurred the  death of a 98 year old lady named Irena Sendler.  During World War Two, Irena was granted permission to work in the Warsaw Ghetto as a nurse. 


Irena as a young woman

She had an ulterior motive - she was German and knew what the Nazi's plans were for the Jews.  Irena smuggled infants out in the  tool box that she carried in the bottom of her truck.  She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the Ghetto.  The soldiers didn't want anything to do with the dog, and the barking hid the noise of the children/infants. 

During this time, Irena managed to smuggle out and save 2,500 children/infants.  Eventually, she was caught and the Nazis broke both her arms and legs, and beat her severely.  Irena kept a name of all those  she had smuggled out and kept them in a glass jar, buried in her garden.

After the war, she tried to locate any parents that might have survived, and reunited the families.  Many had been gassed, so many of the children she rescued were placed in foster family homes, or were adopted.

In 2007,  Irena was put up for the Nobel Peace Prize.  She was not selected - Al Gore won with a slide show on Global Warming.  And that's where the title of this post comes in.

Irena died on the 12th May 2008, being nursed by one of the children that she had saved from the gas chamber.

This brave lady should not be forgotten.


Irena Sendler - 1910 - 2008.

26 comments:

Belle said...

I have never heard of this wonderful woman. What courage she had! She does indeed deserve the Nobel Prize.

SkippyMom said...

I hope her name is resubmitted. She is certainly an unsung hero to be able to ferry, safely SO MANY babies out of the ghettos during that awful period.

God Bless her. I am sure she has a special place.

Thank you for bringing her to everyone's attention.

Pearson Report said...

That sent shivers up my spine - what a post!

Thank you for sharing this moving story. What an undertaking that must have been - I can't fathom it.

I couldn't agree with you more - Al's little slide show was nothing compared to what Irena did.
It astonishes me to no end the way these awards are given out - no rhyme no reason!

I enjoyed this post immensely - I learned something too!

Cheers, Jenny

Just Martha said...

Wow!! Goosebump time. How utterly amazing!! What a treasure...

Desiree said...

What a moving tribute to a truly remarkable and exceedingly brave woman! Thank you so much for bringing her story to our attention! Yes, it's sometimes unfair and unjust that those who are most deserving in life get so little reward and attention whilst many are adulated way beyond anything they've achieved. It's all about marketing! What a noble and fitting end to her self-sacrificing life that one of her saved babies was there to nurse her! It gives me goosebumps!

Southhamsdarling said...

Belle - I don't think many people have heard of her. It's amazing to have been so brave, and yet not be very well-known.

SkippyMom - She certainly was an unsung hero!

Pearson Report - I'm glad you enjoyed the post today.

Just Martha - Goosebumps indeed! It's incredible when you think about it.

Desiree - Yes, I thought it was rather lovely about her being nursed at the end by one of one of the babies that she had saved. (She was a grown up then of course!!).

Lyndylou said...

wow, what an amazing lady! Such a pity that she didn't get the recognition she so rightly deserves.

Vintage Sunday said...

God bless Irena Sendler, and God bless you for keeping her memory alive in this way ~ I was so moved by her story ~ thank you so much for sharing it! Love Brenda

Gawgus things... said...

Wow. That was a very moving post for a Monday morning. So sad to think that she didn't receive the Nobel Peace prize for this heroic work...

Shady Del Knight said...

That was surely a missed opportunity, Thisisme. The giving of awards is at best a flawed undertaking and the outcome always seems unfair to somebody. The person making headlines at the moment is often the one who grabs the attention of the committee and garners the award. In this case a person whose heroic acts took place decades ago was unjustly overlooked and now it's too late to right that wrong. Awards are invariably political in nature and therefore we should not grant them too much importance. History will remember this outstanding woman!

Rebecca said...

wow i never heard of this woman or her story. how wamazing thank you for sharing i love learning new things and she was very brave

Southhamsdarling said...

lyndylou - Yes, it's such a shame. The honours always seem to go to people that are just in the public eye.

Vintage Sunday -It is a very moving story, isn't it? I'm not sure whether she ever had any children of her own. Perhaps she decided against it.

Gawgus things - it would be lovely if she could get some recognition of some sort.

Shady - I totally agree with you that award can often be politically motivated, which is such a shame. I was pleased to be able to remember her here today.

Auntie sezzzzzz... said...

What an amazing woman!!!

What a deserving woman!!!

I was sick, at Al Gore winning then. I am more sick, now.

Pardon me while I go and .... remove-food-from-my-stomach.

:-(((((((((((((((((((

If her name can be resubmitted, as someone said, I certainly hope it will be.

Gentle hugs,
~♥~

Glenda said...

Wow! She was amazing. It's heartwarming how many unsung hero's there are out there - not afraid to stand up for what is right.

Knitty said...

Surely the originators of the Nobel prize would be as saddened as we are. :( Bless you for bringing this story to those of us who had never heard her name before.

Southhamsdarling said...

Aunt Amelia's Attic - I like that ! While you go and remove food from your stomach. I mean, Al Gore!! I ask you.

Karen Walker - thank you so much for dropping into my blog and kindly leaving a comment. It's amazing how wonderful some people can be, isn't it and the good things that they do in their lives.

Glenda Manus - She was obviously a very special lady.

Becca - I had never heard of her either until I was reading something about her story, and thought that it certainly deserved to be repeated.

Unknown said...

Thank you for posting this. I have never heard of this woman but I loved learning about her. She should have one the Nobel Price but I'm sure to hear, that didn't really matter, I'm sure she knew that she was worth more than some silly price because she indeed changed/saved more lives than anyone else attending the show.

BB said...

I'm sure all those children whom she rescued hold her in a special place in their hearts. That would mean more to me than any award that could be bestowed. I love that she passed on being helped by one of "her" babies. Beautiful story This. Thanks for writing about her.

Unknown said...

She was one special lady with so much courage. I do hope that one day she will be recognized for all she did to save lives and make the world a better place to live. Thanks for sharing that inspiring story.
Odie

Southhamsdarling said...

Knitty - Hello! Thank you for visiting today and leaving a comment. The Nobel peace prize judges should be sad, but at least people are learning about her bravery here today.

Bouncin'Barb - you are quite right. The love of those children probably meant much more to her than any Award could. Glad you enjoyed the post today.

Kristina - Thank you for that lovely comment.

Odie - yes,hopefully, one day she will be recognized for all the good she did.

flowers on my table said...

Oh my goodness, what a courageous woman. Thankyou for bringing her to my attention. Please God we never have a war like that again. Thanks for your lovely comments and encouragement.Love Linda x

Jo-Anne's Ramblings said...

I have heard of her and saw a movie about her efforts during the war she was an amazing and courageous woman and she did deserve the Nobel Peace Prize and I thought it was disgraceful that she didn't get it.

Chatty Crone said...

A true hero.

On My Soapbox said...

We get out of this life what we put into it. What an incredibly brave, selfless woman. I can't think of anyone more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Southhamsdarling said...

flowers on my table - yes, indeed, I pray for my children and grandchildren's sake that we do NOT have another war like that.

Jo-Anne Mother and Nana - wow! that's lovely that you had actually heard of Irena, and seen a film as well. Don't suppose you can remember what it was called, although I'm sure it would come up if I 'googled' it!

Unknown said...

Thank you for sharing this amazing person with us. I'm sad that she wasn't chosen. But then again, there are so many great people in history who lived and did good without any thought to winning awards. I was very touched by this post. I loved the genius (training the dog to bark at the sight of Nazi soldiers) and courage of this woman.