May 8, 2025 is the 80th Anniversary of the Allied World War II victory in Europe. WGTE’s documentary Freedom Means Never Surrender is a local effort to tell the story of what happened and how it changed the world four score years ago.
The film, created by Craig Wojciechowski, premiered on WGTE in September, 2023, in honor of the sacrifice and perseverance of Wojciechowski’s grandparents, Marian and Wladyslawa, who, in the face of invasions by the Germans and Soviets in September, 1939, joined the 21st Polish Regiment to combat the Soviet onslaught.
The two joined the Polish resistance against the Nazis, as part of what was known as the Home Army, a group which enlisted over 600,000 members throughout the war. In the early 1940s, Wojciechowski’s grandparents were captured and sent to concentration camps — Wladyslawa to Auschwitz and Marian to Ravensbruck, where they endured torture and brutality. Wladyslawa was subjected to sadistic medical experiments – flesh extraction and bacterial injections. Yet, their spirits remained strong and they refused to relent.
A survival story
Wladyslawa and Marian met and married shortly after the end of World War II. They immigrated to America, arriving by steamship in 1950 with their daughter before settling in Toledo. They each became naturalized U.S. citizens in 1957, becoming “a family of two nations.”
“It shows us what the human spirit is capable of enduring and these stories are on our doorstep,” said Shane Potgieter, Production Manager at WGTE. “The sheer guts and determination where they endured the war’s atrocities and then forged ahead with new lives, [becoming] leaders in the Polish community here.”
The Wojciechowskis became leaders in the Toledo community, especially in the Polish sector. Marian, a project administrator for the City of Toledo, led programs for urban renewal in the Old West End. Wladyslawa (Charlotte) was elected head of the Polish Girl Scouts. They spent the rest of their lives honoring and cultivating their Polish traditions in Toledo.
“They never forgot what they went through but [they, also,] forgave so openly. It’s incredible what the human spirit is capable of and a reminder why these stories are so important,” Potgieter said.
Anastasia Fund assists in the production
The film was assigned to Potgieter at WGTE in 2021 after spending seven years in development. He connected with Tom Sorosiak, an adjunct Professor of history at BGSU, specializing in the study of Genocide and the Holocaust. Both Potgieter and Sorosiak have close personal perspectives on the film, with Wojciechowski being a relative of immigrants and Sorosiak being mentored by a professor who “was a Jewish child survivor from Berlin.”
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Thanks to The Anastasia Fund, a local non-profit founded by Rep. Marcy Kaptur and named for Anastasia and Stephen Kaptur, her parents, who were also Polish immigrants, the film saw new life. Kaptur knew the Wojciechowskis, having gone to high school with their daughter. “We were approached by the Congresswoman to document Marian’s story, and it was through that relationship that we found out so much more about the Wojciechowski family,” said Potgieter, adding, “At that point that we were able to change sequences and add more of the events of Wladyslawa’s life.”
A world with authoritarianism
“In a time when history is being questioned and global patterns resemble the setting of the film, we wanted to bring this story right to the viewers,” Potgieter explains. “We have community members who lived this experience, and no one should ever have to go through what they did for freedom. We hope it strikes a note with viewers.”
“The viewer must not lose their historical perspective,” Sorosiak added, “To preserve a nation, a person’s life may be the last resort to save freedom from tyranny and oppression. These two (the Wojciechowskis) epitomized the fervent desire to do all they could with their fellow Polish fighters; to preserve freedom and democracy, and to defeat its enemies.”
Freedom Means Never Surrender, is available on-line at https://www.youtube.com or https://www.wgte.org. The film has won a Golden Telly Award (honoring excellence in video and television across all screens) for Biography and a Touchstone Award (from the Toledo Press Club) in Digital Video/ Television for Arts & Entertainment.
