Born: August 3, 1923, in Burdykowszczyzna (pow. Nowogródek, woj. nowogródzkie, Poland, now in Belarus)
Died: April 1, 2003 in London, Ontario, Canada
Buried : St. Peter’s Cemetery, London, Ontario, Canada
Family: father Piotr (born 1898); mother Anna (born 1904); brothers: Bronisław (born 1925), Tadeusz (born 1931), Antoni (born 1933), Ludwik (born 1936); sisters: Janina (born 1926), Stanisława (born 1935)
Married: Antoni Soboczyński; Tadeusz Tabaczek; Marian Chojnowski
Children: Elisabeth, Adam
Military Medals: Polish: Krzyż Pamiątkowy Monte Cassino; British: 1939-1945 Star, Italy Star, Defence Medal, War Medal 1939-1945.
Fates before joining Anders Army : Maria’s father as a Polish soldier (gunner) was a prewar military settler in eastern part of Poland – osada Burdykowszczyzna, plot no. 1. On February 10th, 1940, the Marzec family along with other Poles were forcibly deported by the Soviets to Siberia. They were lined up against the wall at gunpoint, given 30 minutes to pack their belongings and sent to Baranowicze, where they were loaded onto boxcars of freight trains like cattle. For two weeks they traveled without stopping with no food or water until they reached the end of the line. When the train finally stopped, they had to continue travelling by foot and sleigh for another 100 kilometers through uncharted brush until they reached the forced labour camps at Archangielsk oblast in Siberia – posiolek Kubało, Ustianski rajon, on February 29, 1940. Hard labour, lack of food and disease were common. Maria fell deathly ill and was unconscious for an extended period of time and was not expected to recover when, by a miracle and medicine smuggled into the camp, she opened her eyes to rejoin her family.
Military history: On September 11, 1941, 1 1/2 years after deportation, when the amnesty opened the borders, the Marzec family left. Not knowing how long the amnesty would last, all the deportees made an exodus as soon as they could. The Marzec family was given an old horse and wagon from the stables and followed the collective survivors along the frozen river as there were no trails through the forest. The family took turns helping the horse pull the wagon, as the horse was too old and fragile to make the journey on its own. It was a total of 2 months of travel by means of wagon, train and boat, across the Caspian Sea until they arrived in Iran. Here they were cleaned, fed and clothed. A Sheik had opened his gardens to use as a camp for the war refugees in Tehran. This is where Maria volunteered and then joined the Polish army led by General Anders in May 1943. Maria under the 2nd Corps Women’s Army Auxiliary Service (WAAS), also known as P.W.S.K in Polish, worked in the hospital as a nurse, caring for all the very sick victims of Soviet deportations.
Her mother, brothers and sisters carried on to a camp in Tengeru, Africa, that had been set up by the British for the Polish refugees. Her father and oldest brother had also joined an army. In 1944 The WAAS was transferred to the 2nd Corps in Italy. As part of the 316 Transport Company serving the battlefields from Monte Cassino to Bologna, Maria drove the heavy supply trucks during the Italian Campaign. These supply trucks provided the troops with food, ammunition and other battle related supplies for the 1st battle lines.
Post-War: After the war, Maria and a large majority of Polish soldiers remained in exile and were transported with the company to camp Witley in Britain to settle. There is where she met the love of her life, Antoni Soboczyński, and they were married in 1948. It was on that day that her mother and siblings found asylum in England and landed by ship in Southampton, England. After years of being separated, Maria and her husband reunited with her family at the refugee camp. This was the start of a difficult new journey: new camp, new culture and still food was rationed. Eventually, this camp closed and the family moved to Redditch, England, looking for work and shelter.
In July 1957, Maria, with her husband and 2 children, Elizabeth and Adam, made the decisions to move to Canada and decided to start their new life in Brantford, Ontario. Shortly after, on December 18, 1960, Antoni Soboczyński died of a massive heart attack. Heartbroken by the loss, Maria decided to move to London, Ontario, to be closer to her sister. She proudly became a Canadian Citizen in 1963. In 1964, Maria met Tadeusz Tabaczek and remarried. They were together for 18 years and, after a long heart illness, Tadeusz died June 6, 1981.
In 1964, Maria joined the Women’s Auxiliary, which merged into SPK in 1999. In 1990, Maria married Marian Chojnowski. After several years of heart illness herself, Maria died of a massive heart attack on April 1, 2003. Maria was a brave, inspirational and compassionate lady, who spread love, wherever she went and left a mark on the hearts of everyone she met. She was an integral part of the Polish community and lived for spending time with her family, especially her grandchildren, who were her life.
author : Stan Skrzeszewski
source : “Book of Remembrance / Książka Pamięci”, Polish Combatant’s Association, Branch 2. London, Ontario, Canada, 2018.
