Book on the Righteous - Jevrejska opština Zemun

Righteous Among The Nations - Serbia
Stories About The Righteous
to Dragutin and Živka. Aca, Matilda and toddler, Elvira,
slept in one room while the other was taken by Dragutin,
Živka and Renica. However, Renica frequently
went over to Radmila’s room and the two of them would
sleep in the same bed. Radmila was six years older than
her friend. They became very close and Radmila called
Renica her younger sister; upon Easter 1942, the bond
became even closer.
A little before Easter, three Nedić gendarmes
came to the village in the early
morning hours. They were looking for
Jews - in this case, the Deutschs. It
was never disclosed who had reported
the Deutsch family to the Quisling
authorities. Some maintained that it
must have been a villager fearing that
the village would be burnt down if it
transpired that there were Jews hiding
in it. Others were certain that it was
someone greedy enough for the sum
of money the Germans paid out for
reports from informers. In any case,
the gendarmes burst into the Stoković
house and ordered the Deutschs to
immediately get their things together
and go with them. Matilda, who had
risen before the others that morning,
saw the gendarmes approaching the
house. She burst into tears and began
wailing at the top of her voice. Renica,
sleeping in bed with Radmila, was woken by her
mother’s cry. The minute Radmila saw the gendarmes
she grabbed Renica by the hand and the two of them
escaped into the garden. The Deutschs and little Elvira
were taken to the concentration camp on Banjica. Renica’s
parents and her baby sister, Elvira, were shot on
April 17 th , 1942.
Unaware of what had happened, Renica spent the days
Rena Ruška Deutsch – Thalma
169
waiting for her parents to come back for her. Although
Dragutin and Živka were as attentive to her needs as
any parent could be, a curious sense of foreboding possessed
the child. She dared not venture far from the
house. She loved to spend her time in Radmila’s company,
but when Radmila invited her to come and take
the cattle out to graze together, Renica was afraid of the
shady grove they had to pass through. Once she finally
decided to go, she ran through the
woods shouting at the top of her voice
to make the dragons and bogeys lurking
from behind each tree go away. In
a letter to Reni after the war, Radmila
wrote: “I remember how we used to
take the cattle and sheep out to graze
in the fields and how I taught you
needlework. We had little time to play
and our childhood lacked the usual
children’s games, but it abounded with
true affection between us.”
Dragutin and Živka had to deal with
problems of their own; mainly, how
to protect the Jewish child which
they had already begun to look on as
their own. New dresses were made
for Renica, a scarf covered her head,
and she began to tread along in the
traditional Serbian “opanci” footwear.
Dressed like this, no one could tell the
girl apart from other village children.
Renica’s Jewish name had to be erased quickly from the
child’s memory for her own protection. They decided to
christen Renica in the Orthodox Church. With her new
name, Ruška, Renica became a member of the Orthodox
congregation. The problem was that Ruška did not like
to go to church much; however, the paper now set aside
in their home was evidence enough to allow Dragutin
and Živka to claim that she was their own child. They