Nahornyi Vasyl and Mariia

Vasyl Nahornyi with his wife Mariia and two children: five-year-old Raia and two-year-old Viktor – lived in the village of Dashiv in Vinnytsia region.

With the beginning of the German occupation, the persecution of Jews began in the village. Everyone who was of Jewish origin was gradually sent out of the surrounding settlements into the ghetto of the village of Illintsi or the town of Haisyn. Later, during the so-called actions, they were transported outside the cities and shot. In 1941–1942, the Nazis organized several punitive actions.

In December 1941, 12-year-old Yuzef Pohrebynskyi knocked on the door of the Nahornyi family's house. Vasyl and Mariia knew the boy and his family as they were locals. The young visitor explained that his mother had instructed him to escape from the column when they were being led to execution and seek help from the villagers. The Nagornyi couple decided to help the boy and hid him on their estate for a year. It was not possible to hide it from ill-wishers, a denunciation was written against the family. Vasyl was summoned by the local chief with the demand to hand over the Jew. The man managed to persuade the latter, to convince him that he would expel the boy and not help anymore. In the meantime, having sent Yuzef to his relatives in the village of Verkhniachka, Vasyl Nagornyi obtained documents with a Ukrainian surname. With a fictitious certificate, the Jewish boy lived in a neighboring village until the expulsion of the Nazis.

After the war, Yuzef Pohrebynskyi settled in Kharkiv. He maintained friendly relations with his saviors throughout his life.

In 1995, Yad Vashem recognized Vasyl and Mariia Nagornyi as a Righteous Among the Nations.

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