The Stefi Foundation
Having rescued 13 Jews from the Nazis, Stefania Podgórska and her sister Helena teach us that, one thought, one act, one person CAN change the world.
Who was Stefania Podgórska?
Fusia and one of the rescued, Max Diamant (Józef Burzmiński), were married immediately after the war. Stefi said that Max had come only for one night and ended up staying 59 years.
What is The Stefania Podgórska
Foundation?
We envision a world in which people are imbued with the belief that one thought, one person, one action CAN change the world.
The mission of The Stefania Podgórska Foundation (formerly The Stefi Foundation) is to inspire compassion, tolerance, and courage by teaching about Stefania and Helena Podgórska, two Catholic girls who rescued 13 Jews during the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Poland.
What do we do?
We focus on public speaking events about Stefania and her story and promoting existing tools, such as “Hidden In Silence”, a television movie made about Fusia in 1994 and a young-adult novel titled “The Light in Hidden Places”, scheduled for a multi-national release in March 2020. Expanding the tools and materials available for more in-depth education is an ongoing project.
Our planned projects involve including Fusia’s history in school curricula globally, developing curricula and teaching materials, as well as digitizing and archiving historical documents, articles, interviews, and videos of Fusia for educators and researchers.
Efforts to explore potential relationships with other organizations and exploring possibilities for guided tours to Przemyśl, Poland are ongoing.
What we need?
Fulfillment of our mission to inspire compassion, tolerance, and courage by teaching about Stefania and Helena Podgórska requires financial resources. Therefore, financial contributions to our Foundation are greatly appreciated. We are interviewing for general board, advisory board and honorary board participants along with qualified people for specific educational and development projects.
Recent Events.
Temple Sinai of Glendale
On Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, Ed Burzminski and his daughter Mia shared the story of Stefania, Helena and Max at Temple Sinai in Glendale, CA. It was a new experience for the Temple to have a speaker share a Holocaust story from a rescuer’s perspective....
Space Command – Los Angeles Air Force Base
It was an honor and a privilege to share Fusia, Helena, Max’s story with hundreds of base personnel at Space Command Los Angeles AFB, Vandenberg AFB in California and Patrick AFB in Florida. Base commander Betsy Beets was blown away, saying “I was not expecting...
Greensburg-Salem High School Presentation
A high school senior at Greensburg-Salem High School near Pittsburgh PA, was doing a project on Stefania “Fusia” Podgórska for her social studies class and wanted to learn more. This young lady reached out to Ed Burzminski through the Stefi Foundation’s website, which...
Jewish Community Center – Redondo Beach
The Jewish Community Center in Redondo Beach CA screened the movie “Hidden In Silence”, the story of teenage Stefania “Fusia” Podgorska along with her adolescent sister Helena who together rescued thirteen Jews from the Nazis by hiding them in an attic for nearly two...
Courage and Conscience – The Story of the Podgórska Sisters
Jill Brown, Director of Public Programs at the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust, moderated this online event. Ed Burzminski and his sister Krystyna Diamant told the story of their parents, Stefania Podgórska Burzminski, Josef Burzminski (formerly Max Diamant) and...
The Light In Hidden Places – a novel about Stefania Podgorska
On sale worldwide in March 2020, "The Light In Hidden Places" is a novel by Sharon Cameron, published by Scholastic Press for the young-adult audience. This novel tells the story of Stefania Podgorska's compassion, tolerance and courage in rescuing 13 Jews from the...
A Special Thanks to Our Donors
Ed & Lori Burzminski
Founding Donors
Janet & David Petersen
Founding Donors
Gosia & Adam Weiss