The Polish Diaspora, 1939-55

PALESTINE
Stanis³aw Milewski at the Junacy School, Palestine, 1944 The Polish scouting movement played a huge role in our lives. My father and brother were in Iraq at this time, after which they went to Italy and fought at the Battle of Monte Cassino. My mother was given the option of going to India or to Africa, but my parents decided that we should go to Palestine; we went by train and truck. In Jerusalem, my mother was sent north to Nazareth, to a young volunteer girls’ school, and I was sent south to Barbara and, in November, 1943, was accepted into the Junacy School there. There were about 500 boys there, from 13 to 18 years of age. I spent the years 1943-47 in the School. I have good memories, as we finally regained our health but, it was a military school with all the rigor of military training. We had to get up early in the morning to march and, as I was the youngest one in the School, I was always last in line. The older boys would leave and go into the proper army. I spent the holidays with my mother in Nazareth. I remember hearing the Muslim call to prayer. It was beautiful there. Palestine was very primitive then, just like in the time of Christ. There was a boys’ school on top of the hill from which you could see Haifa. Stanis³aw Milewski b. 1930, Bagrów February 1940, deported to the Soviet Union 1942-43, Iran 1943-47, Palestine 1947-59, England 1959-present, USA	Motto of the Junacka Szko³a Kadetów (Junacy Cadet School), 1942-47 We went through Iraq and Jordan to Palestine; on May, 1942, we arrived in Rehovoth where the Third Division of the Carpathian Artillery was stationed. The official language here was English, as Palestine was under the control of the British. Some refugees from Persia went to India, others went to southern Africa; we were taken to Palestine. Here, we began elementary school. Every few months my father was able to come and visit us. We lived within a sea of tents for two months until my father was able to find a private room for us to rent. After two months we were moved to Abo Kabir where there were many Polish families. I remember we were near St. Tabitha’s supposed grave, where a light burned all the time. We did not ask why we were moved; we trusted everything would be alright. Zygmunt Kopel b. 1934, Mo³odeczno April 1940, deported to the Soviet Union 1942-47, Iran, Iraq, Palestine 1947-present, England
In Palestine, we were in Baszit. There were about 2,000 boys and girls. We were divided into schools; a cadet school, a mechanical school, a communications school, and an elementary school. I had attended school in Russia but was thrown out with a friend because of an incident that occurred. One day the Commandant’s wife came to the school (it may have been Stalin’s birthday), and wanted us to beg for sweets. We refused, so she tried to take my friend somewhere but he refused. Trying to grab him she fell and, being pregnant, was rushed to the hospital where she gave birth to a healthy baby. However, we were not allowed to return to school. Instead, we had to go to work, cutting peat for fuel. In Baszit, we lived and had our lessons in tents pitched on the sand. We had no books, chalkboards, or other basics. Eventually, we had benches and tables made for us from sacks filled with sand. We decorated the wall of the tents with shapes cut out of metal cans. My brother went to school in Heliopolis as he wanted to join the Air Force. During 1942-47, I was in Palestine and, eventually, left with the mechanical school, not the Junacy School. When the War ended, we planned to go to England. My brother left first with the Air Force. My mom traveled with the young female volunteers, my father with the HQ, and I, separately. So we were all split up. In England the Junacy schools were disbanded. I was sent to a Polish school for boys in Dorset, England. Jerzy Koz³owski b. 1929, £uck February 1940, deported to the Soviet Union 1942-47, Palestine 1947-present, England