Book on the Righteous - Jevrejska opština Zemun

Righteous Among The Nations - Serbia
Stories About The Righteous
Miloš was the proprietor of almost all the flour mills in
the district and therefore of importance to the Germans
and their requirements. He immediately set off for the
Kreiskommandatur and spoke on behalf of Randjel.
“No one knew that the
Jankovićs were Jews, so how
could Randjel have known,”
Miloš said.
Randjel returned home battered
from the beatings he
had sustained.
Milutin Cane Stefanović,
professor of mathematics
from Trstenik
The Danons knew not where
to turn to and they returned
to Belgrade, but not to their
house which had been requisitioned.
They went to Beatrisa’s
sister, Vojislava, married
to Petar Stefanović. By
this time there were no more
Jews left in Belgrade except
for those who were in the Resistance movement. The
massive deportation of Jews to the death camp Sajmište
had been completed in December 1941. However, the
occupying authorities were still searching for those in
hiding. A solution for the Danon family had to be found
without delay.
Petar’s brother, Milutin Stefanović – Cane, lived in
Trstenik with his family. Cane was a professor of mathematics
and former headmaster of the public school
in Kragujevac. Dismissed from the post immediately
upon the German occupation of the town, he returned to
Trstenik. In Trstenik Cane had friends dating back to his
childhood. One of them was Miloš Malićanin – Miša,
borough council chairman. Cane asked Miša to issue
refugee papers to the Danon family. Miša sensed at
once the true nature of the request and arranged for the
papers to be ready when the Danons reached Trstenik.
Officially, the Janković family moved to Trstenik and
Miša took the secret about who the persons hiding behind
the Janković documents really were to his grave.
Many famous revolutionaries, Djilas, Dobrica Ćosić
and others stayed with Miša, a fact that could not stay
undisclosed for long. Some months later, he was shot by
the occupying forces as a collaborator of the Resistance
movement. From then on, only Cane knew the true
identity of the Janković family.
Milutin Stefanović – Cane moved the Danons in with
the family of his kumovi. They were completely unaware
that they had received Jews into their home. Cane
made it known round Trstenik that Toša was a trader
from Belgrade whose house had been destroyed in the
bombardment of Belgrade on April 6 th , 1941, and that,
after wandering round Serbia from then on, they had
finally found refuge in Trstenik. Soon Cane helped Toša
to open a grocery store selling fruit, vegetables and
other household items. On their part, the Danons also
took care not to be discovered. Except for Toša, they
rarely ventured into the street. The children did not go
to school and the only one who kept them company was
Cane’s son, Predrag. Cane guarded the Danons’ secret
and their lives, even through a certain period of time
when the German Command was situated in the vicinity
of the house the Danons were living in. The Germans
never suspected that the Jankovićs could be Jews.
When Belgrade and the greater part of Serbia were liberated
in 1944, Toša returned to Belgrade with his family.
The Danons immigrated to Israel in 1948. They never
forgot the good people that had saved their lives.
Randjel Stojanović
awarded a Righteous among Nations
in 2009
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