During World War II, Irena obtained a permit to work in the Warsaw Ghetto as a plumbing specialist. But her plans went further... she knew what the Nazis' plans were regarding the Jews (being German!). Irena had children hidden in the bottom of her toolbox and carried a burlap sack in the back of her truck (for larger children). She also had a dog in the back of the truck, which she had taught to bark at Nazi soldiers when she entered and left the Ghetto. Of course, the soldiers wanted nothing to do with the dog and its barking would cover up any noise the boys might make. While she was able to maintain this work, she managed to rescue and save around 2500 children. Finally the Nazis caught her. They learned of these activities and on October 20, 1943, Irena Sendler was arrested by the Gestapo and taken to the infamous Pawiak prison, where she was brutally tortured. On a straw mattress, she found a small print of Jesus with the inscription: “Jesus, in You I trust”, and kept it with her until 1979, when she offered it to Pope John Paul II. She, the only one who knew the names and addresses of the families who sheltered Jewish children, endured the torture and denied betraying her collaborators or the hidden children. They broke the bones in her feet and legs, but they were unable to break her resolve. Once recovered, she was, however, sentenced to death. While she was awaiting execution, a German soldier took her for "further interrogation." As he left, he shouted at him in Polish: "Run!" Expecting to be shot in the back, Irena, however, ran through a side door and fled, hiding in the snow-covered alleys until she was sure she had not been followed. The next day, already sheltered among friends, Irena found her name on the list of executed Poles that the Germans published in the newspapers. Members of the Żegota ("Rescue") organization had managed to stop Irena's execution by bribing the Germans and Irena continued to work under a false identity. Irena kept a record of the names of all the children she managed to remove from the Ghetto, stored in a glass jar buried under a tree in her garden. After the war ended, she tried to locate any surviving parents and reunite the family. Most had been taken to the gas chambers. For those who had lost parents, she helped find foster homes or adoptive parents. In 2006 she was proposed to receive the Nobel Peace Prize... but she was not selected. The person who received it was Al Gore for his campaign on Global Warming. Let us never allow this Lady to be forgotten!! I am transporting my grain of sand, forwarding this message. I hope you do the same. More than 60 years have passed since the Second World War ended in Europe. This email will be resent as a commemorative chain, in memory of the 6 million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians (including 1,900 Catholic priests), 500 thousand gypsies, hundreds of thousands of socialists, communists and democrats and thousands of physically and mentally disabled people who were murdered, massacred, raped, starved and humiliated, with the people of the world often looking the other way... Now, more than ever, with the resurgence of racism, discrimination and the massacres of millions of civilians in endless conflicts and wars on all continents, it is imperative to ensure that the world never forgets people like Irena Sendler, who saved thousands of lives practically alone. The intention of this email is to reach 40 million people around the world. Join us and be another link in this commemorative chain and help distribute it throughout the world... Please send this email to people you know and ask them not to interrupt this chain. "The reason I rescued the children originates from my home, from my childhood. I was raised to believe that a person in need should be helped from the heart, regardless of their religion or nationality." - Irena Sendler Please don't just delete it. It won't take a minute to resend it. Thanks. You certainly won't gain anything from this, but you will be remembering an action of humanity done by this woman and, with that, showing the world that there is still time for change...