Overview
- Brief Narrative
- Medal for excellent health care practice, with certficate and presentation box awarded to Anna Toronczyk in 1964 by the government of Poland for her exemplary service as a midwife. Anna was living in Łódź, Poland, when Germany invaded in September 1939. She worked as a midwife in the hospital in the Jewish ghetto until September 1940, when she escaped to the Soviet Union. Her twin sister, Roza Herszenberg, assumed her position in the hospital. Anna was in the Soviet Union until 1946-47, when she was repatriated and able to return to Łódź to be with her family. Roza, her husband Calel, and daughter Salomea escaped the destruction of the ghetto by the Germans in spring 1944 by going into hiding, then obtaining jobs on the crew assigned to stay behind to salvage materials. Following the cleanup, they hid until the city was liberated by Soviet forces in January 1945.
- Date
-
commemoration:
1965 July 22
- Geography
-
issue:
Warsaw (Poland)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Salomea Kape
- Markings
- a. top front of medal : ZA / WZOROWĄ / PRACĘ / W SŁUŻBIE ZDROWIA [FOR EXCELLENT HEALTH CARE SERVICE]
a. back of medal on washer : MENNICA / PAŃSTWOWA [State Mint]
b. front cover of certificate : ZA / WZOROWĄ / PRACĘ / W SŁUŻBIE ZDROWIA [FOR EXCELLENT HEALTH CARE SERVICE]
b. left side of certificate : LEGITYMACJA / Nr 8328 / Odznaki / ,,ZA / WZOROWĄ / PRACĘ / W SŁUŻBIE ZDROWIA” / Warszawa, dn. 22.VII. 1965 r. [IDENTITY CARD / No. 8328 / Badges /FOR PROVIDING / EXCELLENT HEALTH CARE SERVICE / Warsaw, dn. 22.VII. 1965]
b. right side of certiifcate : Ob Anna Torończyk / został wyróżniony odznaką / ,, ZA / WZOROWĄ / PRACĘ / W SŁUŻBIE ZDROWIA” / Minister Zdrowia I Opieki Społecznej [Anna Torończyk Ob / has been awarded the badge /FOR / EXCELLENT / HEALTH CARE / SERVICE / Minister for Health and Social Care] - Contributor
-
Subject:
Anna Toronczyk
Subject: Salomea Kape
- Biography
-
Anna Toronczyk and her twin sister, Roza, were born on January 15, 1901, in Poland. She had a brother, Mel. Both Anna and her sister were nurse/midwives. She may have married a Polish soldier, Mordechai Blinbaum in 1932. In September 1939, after Germany occupied Łódź, Anna was forcibly relocated to the ghetto with the other Jews of the town. She worked as a nurse/midwife in the ghetto hospital. She decided to escape to Soviet territory in the east. Before she left, she told her sister, Roza, that she should assume Anna's position at the hospital, as no one would notice because they looked so much alike. She was in the Soviet Union, until 1946-47. For the last year, she was held in a gulag. Anna was relocated to a displaced person's camp in Germany, and then she returned to Łódź to be with her sister, Roza Herszenberg, and her family. She immigrated to the United States with Roza and her family around 1966. Roza died, age 74, in 1975. Anna died, age 77, in 1978.
Salomea Herszenberg was born in May 17, 1926, in Łódź, Poland, to Calel and Roza Toronczyk. Her father delivered textiles to factories in Łódź. Her mother was a nurse/midwife, .as was her twin sister Anna;Roza also had a brother Mel. A few months after Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, her family was imprisoned inside the ghetto with the other Jews of the town. Both parents continued to work the same jobs. Roza took over Anna's job at the ghetto hospital when Anna escaped to Russian territory in the east. Salomea attended the ghetto high school, where the headmistress, Stella Rein, maintained the normal curriculum and provided a daily bowl of soup for students. Salomea was often very hungry, but a rule of the ghetto was that you did not talk about hunger. Her paternal grandmother, Cerka Herszenberg, died of starvation in 1941. In the fall of 1942, her friend, Stella Szafir, told Salomea that her family had been taken by the Gestapo; a few days later, Stella turned herself in and was taken to Chelmno killing center. In the spring of 1944, the Germans decided to destroy the ghetto. The residents were told that they were being transferred to work camps, though most were being shipped to Auschwitz death camp. Salomea’s mother decided that the family must hide and avoid the deportations. Roza's brother, Mel, had been assigned to the group of about 600 residents that the Germans kept behind to clean the ghetto and sort the remaining belongings. He was part of the work detail that cleaned stables, and he was able to get Roza and her family jobs in his group. They stayed in the ghetto until the liberation of the city by the Soviet Army in January 1945. After liberation, Salomea enrolled in medical school and received her degree in 1952. In 1957, she and her husband, Mendel Kape, whom she had married in 1951, left Poland for Israel where their son was born. In 1966, the family emigrated to New York. Salomea's parents and aunt Anna joined them in New York in 1966. Her father died in 1972/3 and her mother passed away in 1975.
Physical Details
- Language
- Polish
- Classification
-
Awards
- Category
-
Medals
- Object Type
-
Medals, Polish (lcsh)
- Physical Description
- a. Silver colored, shield-shaped metal badge with an enamel medallion in the center and Polish text at the top. Inside the medallion is a yellow enameled circle with a 5-point red cross with a caduceus, or staff and serpent in the center. It is flanked by yellow enamel wheat stalks with a semi-circle of text beneath. The bottom edge has 5 yellow enamel rectangles. The back has a threaded screw with an attached aluminum washer with text around the outside. The badge is attached to the top left corner of the certificate card within the case (b).
b. Rectangular, bi-fold case with a red plastic exterior and a stamped border. Stamped on the front is a shield shaped seal and a gold Polish eagle. On the inside are 2 sheets of paper glued to each side of the fiberboard cover. The papers are preprinted forms that are filled out, stamped, and signed. - Dimensions
- a: Height: 0.875 inches (2.223 cm) | Width: 0.750 inches (1.905 cm) | Depth: 0.375 inches (0.953 cm)
b: Height: 2.500 inches (6.35 cm) | Width: 7.750 inches (19.685 cm) - Materials
- a : metal, enamel paint
b : paper, cardboard, plastic, adhesive, ink
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
- Conditions on Use
- No restrictions on use
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The medal, certificate, and presentation box were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Dr. Salomea Kape, the niece of Anna Toronczyk.
- Record last modified:
- 2022-07-28 18:28:52
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn517270
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Also in Salomea Herszenberg Kape family collection
The collection consists of artifacts, documents, and photographs relating to the experience of Roza Herszenberg Kape and Anna Toronczyk and their family in Łódź, Poland, before, during, and after the Holocaust, Anna's experiences as a midwife in displaced persons camps, and the family's immigration to the United States in the 1950-60s. Some of these materials may be combined into a single collection in the future.
Date: 1920-1965
Łódź ghetto scrip, 50 pfennig note, saved from the ghetto
Object
Scrip used by Salomea Herszenberg while she was imprisoned in the Jewish ghetto in Łódź, Poland. When the Germans transferred Jews to the ghetto, they confiscated all currency in exchange for Quittungen [receipts] that could be spent only inside the ghetto. In February 1940, following Germany's occupation of Poland in September 1939, 14-year old Salomea and her family were forced to move there. Salomea attended school and her parents worked their same jobs; her mother was a midwife, her father delivered textiles. In spring 1944, the Germans decided to destroy the ghetto. With the assitance of Salomea's maternal uncle, they were able to get into a work detail kept behind by the Germans to clean and sort belongings. After that, they hid in the ghetto until it was liberated by the Soviet Army in January 1945.
Bronze Krzyz Zaslugi [Cross of Merit] awarded to a Polish midwife for postwar service
Object
Bronze medal with attached ribbon, molded box, and certificate presented to Anna Toronczyk in 1956 by the government of Poland for her exemplary service as a midwife. Anna was living in Łódź, Poland, when the Germans invaded in September 1939. She worked as a midwife in the hospital in the Jewish ghetto until September 1940, when she escaped to the Soviet Union. Her twin sister, Roza Herszenberg, assumed her position in the hospital. Anna was in the Soviet Union until 1946-47, when she was repatriated and able to return to Łódź to be with her family. Roza, her husband Calel, and daughter Salomea escaped the destruction of the ghetto by the Germans in spring 1944 by going into hiding, then obtaining jobs on the crew assigned to stay behind to salvage materials. Following the cleanup, they hid until the city was liberated by Soviet forces in January 1945.
Gold Krzyz Zaslugi [Cross of Merit] with ribbon, certificate, and box awarded to a Polish midwife for postwar service
Object
Gold Cross of Merit medal with attached ribbon ribbon, case, and certificate presented to Anna Toronczyk in 1964 by Poland for her exemplary service as a midwife. Anna was living in Łódź, Poland, when the Germans invaded in September 1939. She worked as a midwife in the hospital in the Jewish ghetto until September 1940, when she escaped to the Soviet Union. Her twin sister, Roza Herszenberg, assumed her position in the hospital. Anna was in the Soviet Union until 1946-47, when she was repatriated and able to return to Łódź to be with her family. Roza, her husband Calel, and daughter Salomea escaped the destruction of the ghetto by the Germans in spring 1944 by going into hiding, then obtaining jobs on the crew assigned to stay behind to salvage materials. Following the cleanup, they hid until the city was liberated by Soviet forces in January 1945.
Short stories about the Łódź Ghetto
Document
Contains short stories relating to the Łódź Ghetto and its inhabitants by Salomea Kape. Also contains a photocopy of a worker identification card from the ghetto.
Dr. Salomea Kape papers
Document
The papers consist of documents, photographs, and identification cards relating to the experiences of the Herschenberg family [donor's family] in Łódź, Poland, during the Holocaust. Also includes identification papers, photographs, and documents pertaining to Anna Toronczyk [donor's maternal aunt] and her work as a midwife in displaced persons camps after World War II, and the Herschenberg family's experiences in the Łódź ghetto and their immigration to the United States.
Salomea Kape photograph
Document
Collection consisting of a photograph of Dr. A. Weiskopf, a physician in the Łódź ghetto.