Oleksandra Vasiejko for decades has been taking care of the graves of Polish victims of the UPA’s purges. During the war, the Poles were helped to hide by her father Kalennyk Lukashko, and after the war, he told her to look after the graves. Later she helped Polish researchers to find mass graves

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1. Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oleksandra_Vaseyko

   Source: https://dziendobry.tvn.pl/gorace-tematy/babcia-szura-historia-niezwyklej-ukrainki-z-wolynia-st7211678

   Translation:

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   Oleksandra Wasiejko, known as Grandma Shura, looked after the burial sites of Poles murdered during the Volhynian massacre. Her story was described by Witold Szabłowski. – They stood up to the nationalists who started killing,” emphasised the journalist and reporter on Good Morning Holidays.

   **Grandmother Shura – an extraordinary Ukrainian woman from Volhynia**

   In 2019, we produced material on Good Morning TVN about an amazing Ukrainian woman from Volhynia decorated by the Polish president. Oleksandra Vasiejko, known as Grandma Shura, received the first ever medal ‘Virtus et Fraternitas’, which means valour and fraternity. It is awarded to those who helped Poles during wars and totalitarianism.

   — I recall the funerals of Poles. They are no longer there, and they hand me the medals. I did not expect that I would ever receive any award,” Oleksandra Vasiejko recalled in the material at the time.

   Grandma Shura’s dad was looking after a Polish family who were hiding in the forest from Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) bands during the 1943 Volhynian massacre. When he found them murdered, he buried them and took his six-year-old daughter to the burial site.

   — The father said there might be a time when the Poles would come here. He said: “Show them then where the graves are. I probably won’t live to see it. [But you will probably be alive when that time comes’. Sometimes it was hard to walk into that forest, through water, mud and sand. However, I kept going forward, in order to clean up at these crosses,” recounted our interviewee.

   Grandmother Shura showed the graves to the Poles. Thanks to her, the memory of the people buried in them did not die.

   **Risking his life, he helped Poles**

   The story of Oleksandra Vasiejko was described in his book by Witold Szabłowski.

   – The book “Tales from Volhynia” is about Ukrainians who in 1943 did not join in killing Poles, but saved them. They stood up to the nationalists who started killing and, often risking their own and their children’s lives, saved Poles,” said the journalist and reporter.

   – A good example is the father of Mrs Oleksandra Kalennyk Lukashuk. […] Despite the fact that he had a wife in the last months of her pregnancy, when in 1943 the Bandera started burning villages right next to the one where Ms Oleksandra’s family lived, Mr Lukashuk, risking his life, helped Poles. He transported them to safety, took them food into the forest and managed to save some of the Poles. Some he did not manage to save, and this place where they were killed, he showed his little daughter and told her to always take care of these graves, because our friends lie there,” he added.