Simon Wiesenthal Center
Yad Vashem
Righteous Among the Nations Medal

On April 29, 2003, commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Upising, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn and Israeli and Polish diplomats joined in presenting Jack Kent with Israel's highest honor, the ‘Righteous Among the Nations’ award.

Hahn, Israeli and Polish Consul Generals, Council members Jack Weiss and Antonio Villaragoisa, and Rabbi Marvin Hier, dean and founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, joined together in solidarity with community members at the Museum of Tolerance to honor the memory of the victims of the Nazi Holocaust on the 60th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

At the Wiesenthal Center commemoration, the State of Israel bestowed the honor of Righteous Among the Nations upon Jack Kent, Jan Bartczak, and Olga Chaplanova, for their courage in saving Jewish victims during the Holocaust.

Special guests at the ceremony were honoree Jack Kent and his wife Rosa, whom he rescued as a young girl upon her escape from the Rohatyn ghetto.

The Righteous Among the Nations award is an additional stipulation in the law requiring Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority, to honor "the Righteous Among the Nations who risked their lives to save Jews."

Since 1963, a commission headed by an Israeli Supreme Court justice has been charged with the duty of awarding the title "Righteous among the Nations." The commission is guided in its work by certain criteria and meticulously studies all pertinent documentation, including evidence by survivors and other eyewitnesses. In order to arrive at a fair evaluation of the rescuer's deeds and motivations, the commission takes into consideration all the circumstances relevant to the rescue story.

Perhaps the most publicized recipient of the Righteous Among the Nations title is Oskar Schindler, also from a middle-class Catholic family, whose experiences were cronicled in the award-winning movie Schindler's List.

Ironically, Martin Kent produced a documentary special on the life of Oskar Schindler for A&E's popular Biography television series.

Click here for additional information about the Righteous Among the Nations medal.

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