Išgelbėjimo istorija

Stasys Žukauskas, a former teacher at the Lithuanian Gymnasium in Skuodas, lived with his daughter Stasė (Stanislava) Jankienė and her husband Augustinas Jankus in the village of Gintalaičiai in Kretinga County. Stasys' wife Stanislava Žukauskienė Tallat-Kelpšaitė died giving birth to their second child. Stanislava (the younger one) was brought up alone by her father Stasys. Augustinas worked on Stasys' farm, which is how he met Stanislava. Stanislava and Augustinas had two children, Donatas (1942) and Andrius (died young). In December 1943, Stasė's former classmate Estera Želikovič appeared on their doorstep and asked for shelter. In October 1943, E. Zelikovič, a native of Skuodas, escaped from the Šiauliai ghetto and wandered around the countryside until she found herself on the outskirts of Gintalaičiai and remembered her friend Stasė. She was warmly welcomed at the Žukauskas home - Stasys, a former teacher, who managed the farm and dealt with the mercenaries, received Esther very kindly, as if she were his daughter's friend who had come to spend a holiday with him. But because of the large number of people there, it was decided to look for another place of refuge for her. They found a shelter for Zelikovic with a couple of neighbouring peasants who agreed to give her shelter in exchange for two sheep given to them by Žukauskas. Zelikovic stayed there for a short time and then returned to the home of Žukauskas, where they kept her hidden in the attic until the Red Army arrived in the area. Želikovič (later Sharvit) left Lithuania for Eretz Israel, arriving in September 1945. Žukauskas was killed in 1945 and the Jankus and their children were exiled to Siberia until they were allowed to return to their village in the 1960s, but after the exile the Jankus had to go back to the home of Ignas Žukauskas (Stasys' brother), because their home was no longer there. The rest of their lives they worked on the collective farm. Stanislava was very fond of music and sang in the church choir.