Hlazkova Vira

Vira Hlazkova lived in Uman, (currently Cherkasy region), with the family of her daughter Zoya. Like many of the city's inhabitants, Vira was well acquainted with the tailor Roza Turiy, a widow with three children.          

At the beginning of the war, Rosa's eldest son, Hrisha, went to the front, other family members were unable to evacuate. Hence since August 1, 1941, they were under German occupation. Jews were persecuted; people were killed individually and in small groups. In September, about 1,500 Jewish men were shot. 3,000 children and women were thrown into the basements of the former Komsomol headquarters, where almost all suffocated. The vast majority of Uman's Jews, about 9,000 people, were shot dead on October 8 on the outskirts of the city, in Sukhyi Yar.

Vira Hlazkova went to the road on which the police were escorting thousands of doomed to their last destination. She did not find Rosa in the crowd and did not see how Rosa's younger son, 14-year-old Sasha, sneak into the crowd of curious people standing on the sidelines. That day he went from the city to the village, joined the shepherds, and stayed with them for a month. With the onset of winter, the boy had to look for another place. He returned to Uman and in one evening knocked on the doors of Vira Hlazkova, as he remembered her as a good woman. Despite the objections of other family members, Vira accepted Sasha.

The place of his permanent shelter was the underground, to where the rescuer was bringing food and water, taking  care of other his needs. When it became warm again, Vira offered Sasha to try to live openly: she told the neighbors in advance that she was waiting for the arrival of an orphaned nephew, so his appearance did not surprise anyone. Later, all family members became so accustomed to Sasha's presence that they lost caution - the boy not only moved freely around the house and yard, but also began to walk with Vira, and even alone, to the village center. But once, he was recognized by pre-war acquaintances and handed over to the police. Sasha was severely beaten and sent, along with a group of other people, to a labor camp in Lviv.

For many months, Vira knew nothing about him. Sasha returned to Uman after the liberation of the region from Nazis, in 1944, and lived with Vira's family until he was drafted into the army. After demobilization, Oleksandr Turiy settled in Odesa. Until Vira’s death in the late 1950s, he maintained constant contact with her.

On September 15, 2003, Yad Vashem awarded Vira Hlazkova with the honorary title of "Righteous Among the Nations."