Maria Marzec was born on August 3, 1923, to Piotr and Anna Marzec in the military settlement of Burdykowszczyzna, located in the Nowogródek Province of eastern Poland (today part of Belarus). Her father was a decorated Polish soldier who had fought in the Polish-Soviet War of 1919–1921. In recognition of his military service and Poland's newly regained independence, he was granted land as an Osadnik Wojskowy (Military Settler) in the eastern borderlands of the Second Polish Republic.

Maria's peaceful childhood came to a devastating end after World War II began in September 1939. Germany invaded Poland from the west on September 1, followed by the Soviet Union from the east on September 17, under the secret provisions of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. The Soviet occupation led to the systematic deportation of tens of thousands of Polish military families, government officials, educators, and civilians to remote regions of the Soviet Union.

On the night of February 10, 1940, when Maria was just sixteen years old, Soviet soldiers arrived at the family home in the middle of the night. Given only 30 minutes to gather their belongings, the Marzec family was forced onto cattle cars at the railway station in Baranowicze. They endured more than two weeks in overcrowded freight wagons with little food, water, or sanitation before reaching the end of the rail line. From there, they were forced to travel another 100 kilometres by sled and on foot through deep snow to a forced labour camp in the Archangel (Arkhangelsk) region of Siberia, arriving on February 28, 1940.

Life in the Soviet labour camp was brutal. Hunger, freezing temperatures, disease, and exhausting physical labour became an everyday reality. Maria became critically ill and remained unconscious for an extended period. Her family feared she would not survive, but thanks to medicine secretly smuggled into the camp, she eventually regained consciousness and recovered - a miracle that would allow her remarkable journey to continue.

Everything changed following the Sikorski-Majski Agreement in 1941, which granted an "amnesty" to many imprisoned Polish citizens. On September 11, 1941, after nearly eighteen months in Siberia, the Marzec family seized the opportunity to escape. Using an old horse and cart, they travelled for nearly two months across frozen rivers, forests, and by train and ship toward the newly forming Polish Army under General Władysław Anders. Eventually, they crossed the Caspian Sea and arrived safely in Persia (modern-day Iran).

In Pahlavi, Persia, Maria experienced kindness after years of unimaginable hardship. Refugees were washed, fed, clothed, and given medical care. In Tehran, where the Shah had opened his gardens to house thousands of Polish refugees, Maria volunteered to care for others before enlisting in the Women's Auxiliary Service of the Polish II Corps in May 1943. She initially served as a nurse, caring for fellow survivors weakened by starvation, disease, and years of Soviet imprisonment.

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While Maria entered military service, her mother and younger siblings were evacuated to the Polish refugee settlement at Tengeru, Tanzania, while both her father and eldest brother joined the Polish II Corps to continue the fight for Poland's freedom.

In 1944, Maria was transferred with the Women's Auxiliary to Italy, where she joined the renowned 316 Transport Company. Driving heavy military trucks under dangerous wartime conditions, she transported food, ammunition, fuel, medical supplies, and equipment to front-line troops, from the Battle of Monte Cassino through the Italian Campaign and ultimately to Bologna. Her courage placed her among the pioneering women who served in vital combat-support roles during one of the Allies' most difficult campaigns.

For her wartime service, Maria received numerous honours, including:

 

Polish medal:

• Monte Cassino Cross

 

British medals:

• 1939–1945 Star

• Italy Star

• Defence Medal

• War Medal 1939–1945

Following the war, like thousands of Polish veterans who could not safely return to a Soviet-controlled Poland, Maria remained in exile. She was transferred with the Polish II Corps to Witley Camp in England, where she met Antoni Soboczyński, the love of her life. They married in 1948, remarkably on the very same day that Maria's mother and siblings finally arrived in England after years spent in refugee camps in Africa. Together, the reunited family began rebuilding their lives despite living in displaced persons camps, adapting to a new country, a new language, and continued post-war rationing.

Seeking greater opportunities, Maria, Antoni, and their children Elizabeth and Adam immigrated to Canada in July 1957, settling in Brantford, Ontario. Tragedy struck only three years later when Antoni died suddenly of a heart attack on December 18, 1960. Maria subsequently moved to London, Ontario, to be closer to her sister and became a proud Canadian citizen in 1963.

Maria later married Tadeusz Tabaczek in 1964. They shared eighteen years together until his passing in 1981. That same year she became active with the Polish Women's Association (PWSK), an organization dedicated to preserving the legacy of Polish women who served during the war. When PWSK later merged with the Association of Polish Veterans (SPK) in 1999, Maria remained an active and respected member of the Polish veteran community. In 1990, she married Marian Chojnowski, with whom she spent her remaining years.

After a lifetime defined by extraordinary resilience, sacrifice, and service, Maria passed away in London, Ontario, on April 1, 2003, following heart disease. She is buried at St. Peter's Cemetery in London, Ontario, where her legacy lives on through her family and the generations inspired by her remarkable journey.

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Maria Marzec's life tells the story of countless Polish exiles whose courage carried them from the horrors of Soviet deportation, through war and displacement, to the building of new lives in Canada. She survived one of history's darkest chapters with unwavering determination, served her country with honour, and left behind a legacy of strength, perseverance, and hope that continues to inspire her descendants today.

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Copyright: Wanda Latuszak & the Marzec family