Maria Chojnowska (nee Marzec) was born to Piotr and Anna on 3 August 1923, in the military settlement of Burdykowszczyzna, Poland - now in Belarus. She was the eldest of 7 children: Maria, Bronislaw, Janina, Antoni, Tadeusz, Stanislawa & Ludwig.

 

On February 10th, 1940, the Marzec family were forcibly deported to Siberia. They were lined up against the wall of their home at gunpoint, given 30 minutes to pack their belongings and sent to the Baranowicze station where they were loaded like cattle onto a boxcar of a freight train. For two weeks they travelled without stopping, with no food or water until they reached the end of the line. Then they had to continue foot and sleigh for another 100 kilometres through brush until they reached the forced labour camp at Arkhangelsk in Siberia on 29 February 1940.

 

Hard labour, lack of food and disease were common. Maria fell deathly ill and was unconscious for an extended period and was not expected to recover. By a miracle some medicine was smuggled into the camp, and Maria recovered.

 

When ‘amnesty’ was negotiated, the family left the camp on 11 September 1941. Not knowing how long the Amnesty would last, all the deportees made an exodus as soon as they could. The Marzec family was given an old horse and wagon from the stables and followed the other survivors along the frozen river as there were no trail lines through the forest. The family took turns helping the horse pull the wagon, as the horse was too old and fragile to make the journey on its own.

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It took two months of travel by wagon, train, and ship across the Caspian Sea, before they arrived in Persia (now Iran). Here they were cleaned, fed, and clothed. A Sheik had opened his gardens in Tehran to use as a camp for the Polish refugees. This is where Maria joined the Women’s Auxiliary of the Polish 2nd Corps in May 1943. Maria worked in the hospital as a nurse caring for all the very sick victims of the Soviet deportation.

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Her father and oldest brother had also joined the Polish 2nd Corps, while her mother, brothers, and sisters were sent to the Tengeru Polish refugee camp in East Africa. In 1944, she was transferred to Italy and served as 2nd Lieutenant in the 316 Transport Company serving the battlefields from Monte Casino to Bologna. Maria drove the heavy supply trucks provided the troops with food, ammunition and other battle related supplies for the 1st battle lines during the Italian Campaign.

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She was awarded the following medals:

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Polish Medals:

• Monte Cassino Cross.

British Medals:

• 1939-1945 Star,

• Italy Star,

• Defence Medal,

• War Medal 1939-1945.

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After the war, Maria and a large majority of soldiers remained in exile and were transported with the company to the Witley Camp in Britain. That is where she met Antoni Soboczynski and they were married in 1948. It was on that day that her mother and her siblings reached England by ship from Africa to Southampton. After years of being separated, Maria reunited with her family at the Whtley camp.  Eventually, this camp closed, and the family moved to Redditch, England, looking for work and shelter.

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In July 1957, Maria, her husband and 2 children, Elizabeth and Adam, emigrated to Canada and started their new life in Brantford, Ontario. On 18 December 1960, Antoni Soboczynski, died of a massive heart attack. Maria moved to London Ontario to be closer to her sister. S

 

he became a Canadian Citizen in 1963. In 1964, Maria met Tadeusz Tabaczek and remarried. They were together for 18 years when, after a long illness, Tadeusz died on 6 June 1981.

 

Maria Joined the Women’s League of the Polish Combatants Association and in 1990 she married one of the members, Marian Chojnowski.

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Maria passed away in London, Ontario on 1 April 2003, at the age of 80 years. She was buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery.

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Copyright: Soboczynski - Chojnowski families

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