Tengeru - The Family Rarogiewicz

The Rarogiewicz Family in Tengeru. From L-R, Alice, Zofia, Teresa and Stanislaw

Whilst I was carrying out further research on Tengeru Camp in 2017 I came across a reply on a forum from a lady called Teresa Rarogiewicz where she mentioned John Minnery: "My father run the camp canteen, cinema, butchery etc. under Col. John Minnery. My mother was the teacher responsible for all the handicrafts sold by the school to raise money.". I contacted Teresa to see if she had any more information regarding John. The most exciting information she had was that John and Mary were actually her godparents and that her parents had been good friends with both John and Mary.


Teresa then very kindly forwarded pictures of John and Mary that she had (see the foot of this posting) as well as her family's story. She also, very kindly, allowed me to reproduce that story on this posting. Her family's story is truly moving as it is impressive.


Teresa wrote:


"My mother and sister got picked up by the NKWD police in Lwòw (now Lviv Ukraine) on 10/2/1940 and taken to the station where a train with about 50 cattle wagons was waiting for them. My father returned home to hear what happened and went to the station looking for them, found them and got onto the train. They were packed 50 or so into each wagon and had little room to move and were then taken to Siberia arriving in Krasnoyarsk after 14 days. 
My father had to work as a logger on the Jenisey River in a small village called Beret. They remained there till 30/7/1942, a year after the amnesty for the Polish people in Russia was decided. 
My father had been arrested by the NKWD on 21/6/1941 and was taken to Lubianka prison for questioning (and tortured) as they thought he was a revolutionary. 
In August 1941 the Poles were informed they were free and my Dad was still not back. Some people started leaving and my mother waited, and finally they released my father and returned him to the camp. 
They travelled through Nowysybirsk, Tomsk, Samarkanda, Buchara arriving in Krasha where the Polish community was already functioning. Then on to Pahlevi and Teheran and then Ahwaz on the Persian Gulf. They were treated very well by the late Shah of Persia.Next stop was Karachi: During all this time my father, as commandant, was involved in the organisation of the transportation of the Poles. They sailed on a boat called "Ruys" arriving in Tanga and then by train to Tengeru, arriving there on 10th November 1942. 
The first Tengeru commandant was Captain Shilling. An Englishman who was very strict and run the camp like an army. 
My father became Block commandant and then under Col. Minnery he became responsible for Culture and Education etc 
My mother taught sewing, embroidery, crafts etc. and I was born in 1944 and the Minnerys were my godparents. 
My father was then appointed as manager of the co-operative store, cinema, club etc. working closely with John. 
In December 1949 the camp was liquidated and the Poles left for UK, Canada, Australia, and many remained in Tanganyika and Kenya. 
My father remained and started farming. Unfortunately he died in 1955, the time in Siberia had weakened his heart. 
My parents were good friends of Mary and John. 
I don't remember though what happened to them after the camp closed down. I have a feeling they returned to Scotland or England."

The exiles of the Family Rarogiewicz

I created the rough map above to give you a feel for the journey her family made from February 1940, when they were initially deported from Poland to Siberia, through to November 1942, when they finally arrived in Tanganyika.

Teresa went on to say :
"I have given you, as briefly as possible, what happened to my parents. 
Years before my Mum died I had asked her to write down their experience, which she did, and of which I am very grateful. 
If you can get hold of a book called "Between Shades of Grey" by Ruta Sepetys you will get a very good idea of the train journey and life in a Soviet labour camp. It is actually about the Lithuanian "intelligenzia" who were taken to Siberia just like the Poles but it gave me a very clear picture of what my parents must have gone through during that period. 
Of course they lost everything in Poland and my mother never wanted to go back. 
Last year my husband and I went to visit Lviv as for many years I had had the desire to see where my parents came from. My Mum had told me about the Opera House they always went to, the University with it's massive park in front where my Dad studied, the Music conservatoire where she studied, the church where they got married. We loved the old town, the people, the food, we saw a ballet and an opera at the Opera House - it was great. Hope I have been of some help"

I was able to fill Teresa in on what happened to John and Mary following the closure of the Tengeru Camp (December 1949).

Teresa is the only surviving member of the Rarogiewicz family that lived in Tengeru.

Her father Stanislaw passed away in 1955.  

Her sister Alice died in 1977. Teresa said of her sister "she was always sickly and in fact Mum said that they nearly lost her on numerous occasions in Siberia".

Teresa's mother Zofia passed away in 1986.

Some of Teresa's pictures are included below:

Zofia Rarogiewicz, Middle row, 2nd from left

Zofia Rarogiewicz, 3rd from left, second row from front

Zofia Rarogiewicz, 1st from right, front row

Stanislaw 
(painting by Maria Milker, a Polish artist in Tengeru Camp)

Zofia
(painting by Maria Milker, a Polish artist in Tengeru Camp)