Krysia Jaworowska. From the Sybir Memorial Museum collection

Krysia Jaworowska was a year and a half old at the time of deportation. Together with her parents, Józef and Olga, and her uncle she was deported on 20 June 1941 from Zaścianki near Białystok. Józef Jaworowski had worked in the police before the war, so the family were considered enemies of the Soviet authorities. The girl did not survive the hardships of the journey. She died during the transport, probably in August 1941. On the back of the photograph there is a handwritten note: “Krysia is dead, buried in Siberia, Altai Krai, Biysk 1941.” The Jaworowskis initially stayed in Elekmonar, working in the local brickyard. They were then sent to Oyrot-Tura (now Gorno-Altaisk) in the Altai Krai. In 1942, Olga gave birth to a son, Sławomir. A year later, Józef joined the newly formed 1st Tadeusz Kościuszko Infantry Division. He took part in the battles near Lenino, where he was seriously wounded. In 1944, he returned to Oyrot-Tura. The family returned to Poland in 1946.