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Irena Sendler was a Polish social worker who assisted in saving hundreds of Jewish children during the time of the Holocaust. She was 29 years old when the World War II began.

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Irena Sendler was the leader of the children’s section of Zegota. Zegota is a secret polish underground organization during the time of the Holocaust that freed Jews from the Nazi’s. It was created on December 4, 1942. Irena earned her position as head of children Bureau in Zegota due to her prior work in aiding the Jewish people, as well as her determination and leadership qualities.

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Irena Sendler had a large impact on many Jewish people during the time of the Holocaust. Irena and her associates rescued Jewish children out of the Warsaw Ghetto, which was the largest of all ghettos created by the Nazi’s. Within the Warsaw ghetto Jewish people experienced terrible conditions such as, forced labor, lack of food and fear of their life. She rescued them using many different tactics. She would hide children in ambulances and disguise them as patients. She also would hide children in coffins and portray them as dead bodies so that the guards wouldn’t suspect anything. The young and small children would be carried in bags and suitcases. She also used underground tunnels and sewer systems escorting the children to safety. In addition, when she was captured by the Gestapo she refused to speak out and didn’t give them any information on the location and names of the children she had rescued.

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in October 1943, Irena was arrested by Gestapo, the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Someone who knew about Sendler’s secret activities betrayed her and informed the Gestapo with details on her involvement in saving Jewish children. The Gestapo beat her, ripped out her fingernails and tortured her but she refused to tell them any information about the organization and where the children where. She was then sentenced to death but people within Zegota were able to bribe the guards, mainly with cash, in order to save Irena. They proceeded to fake her execution, allowing her to live and she changed her identity throughout the remainder of the war.

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Irena Sendler was born February 15, 1910, in Otwock, Poland. She died May 12, 2008 at 98 years old. Irena started helping and smuggling Jewish people in the year of 1939 and continued until years after the war ended.

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She was married to Mieczyslaw Sendler for 13 years before she got divorced. After the divorce she married Stefan Zgrzembski, who she had 3 kids with. He died in 1961 and she remarried Mieczyslaw who she later divorced again 10 years later.

She did not attend her mothers funeral because she was hiding, with her new identity underground and continuing her work saving the Jewish people.

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Between the years 1942-1943 Irena and her colleagues rescued 2,500 Jewish children from the Warsaw ghetto. She saved their lives and provided them with new identity, shelter, food and care. She also kept a list of there real identities in order to reunite them with there families post war.

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“A person must be rescued when drowning, regardless of religion and nationality”-Irena Sendler

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How one person saved over 2,000 children from the Nazis - Iseult Gillespie

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Sculpture captures Irena rescuing 2 children with bullet casings on the floor. This statue is found in Great Britain

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“Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor. “They stack the odds still we take the street for the kill, with the will to survive” (Survivor). This quote connects to the theme of taking a stand and survival. It’s talking about not being afraid even when things are against you, stay strong and beat the odds. Irena took a stand and saved the children knowing she could’ve easily been killed. The odds were against her because she was out numbered and had no help. She was independent and fought for those kids because no one else was going to do it.

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Survivor - Eye Of The Tiger (Official HD Video)