From the CONNECTICUT POST (Bridgeport),

December 15, 2002

Fairfield man honored by Polish government
His Holocaust knowledge provides understanding

By PATTI WOODS
Correspondent

Sometimes it takes only a small event for a person to be called to action. For Fairfield resident Charles Chotkowski, it was a movie.

"A film came out called 'Shoah' [the Hebrew word for Holocaust], and the director had a fairly negative opinion of Poles in the Holocaust," said Chotkowski.

After viewing the film, he attended a discussion about it at a local synagogue. "I was rather upset to find there was nobody from a Polish background on the panel," he said.

This got Chotkowski thinking about Jewish-Polish relations, and he decided to take action.

Now a member of the executive board of the National Polish American - Jewish American Council, the director of research for the Holocaust Documentation Committee of the Polish American Congress and a member of the Holocaust Studies Committee of the Kosciuszko Foundation, Chotkowski was recently honored for his work.

At a Polish Independence Day celebration on Nov. 12, Chotkowski was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Polish Republic during a ceremony at the Polish consulate
general's office in New York City.

"Charles has devoted himself to the accurate and objective presentation of the tragic story of Polish suffering during the German occupation," said Frank Milewski, chairman of the PAC
Holocaust Documentation Committee. The medal was one of four bestowed by the Polish [government].

"Polish history had always been a hobby," said Chotkowski, a retired official with the Soo Line Railroad Co. in Minneapolis. "I found there was a lot of erroneous information about the
Holocaust," he said.

For instance, some believe the Poles could have done more to help save the Jews from the Nazis.

Not so, said Chotkowski, who is [not] Jewish. "Poland was a conquered country," he said. "The Nazis could do as they pleased. They didn't have the support of the Poles."

Chotkowski went on to say that even Catholic priests and bishops were among those killed in Poland.

"Ever since the fall of Communism there has been a rebirth," he said. "Many people in Poland are now recovering their sense of Jewishness. Some American Jews are uncomfortable with the idea of Polish Jews."

Through his work, Chotkowski hopes to open a dialogue. "There are quite a few of us in the Polish-American community who are interested in improving relations," he said.

As part of his activism, Chotkowski is also a member of the town of Fairfield's Holocaust Commemoration Committee. "It's an honor to serve on that committee," he said.

Each spring, a program is presented on Holocaust Remembrance Day, which usually includes a speech by a survivor. In addition, a tree is dedicated at a public site somewhere in town.

"It spreads the idea that this is not only a Jewish concern, but a Protestant and Catholic one as well," said Chotkowski.

In the meantime, Chotkowski is happy to share his knowledge and proud of the honor that was bestowed upon him.

"Progress comes slow in this area," he said. "That's the nice thing about the medal. It shows there's progress, even if it's
slow."

This message has been received from www.npajac.org

For more information on the National Polish American - Jewish American Council, visit the Web site, www.npajac.org. For information about the Kosciuszko Foundation, visit,
www.kosciuszkofoundation.org.