IRENA SENDLER

I was brought up to believe that a person must be rescued when drowning, regardless of religion and nationality.

I was taught that if you see a person drowning, you must jump into the water to save them, whether you can swim or not.

Every child saved with my help and the help of all the wonderful secret messengers, who today are no longer living, is the justification of my existence on this earth, and not a title to glory.

People can be only divided into good or bad; their race, religion, nationality don't matter.

The world can be better if there's love, tolerance and humility.

The term 'hero' irritates me greatly.

I still carry the marks on my body of what those "German supermen" did to me then. I was sentenced to death.

Heroes do extraordinary things. What I did was not an extraordinary thing. It was normal.

I was brought up to believe that a person must be rescued when drowning, regardless of religion and nationality. The term ‘hero’ irritates me greatly – the opposite is true – I continue to have pangs of conscience that I did so little.

Every child saved with my help and the help of all the wonderful secret messengers, who today are no longer living, is the justification of my existence on this earth, and not a title to glory.

The term 'hero' irritates me greatly.

People can be only divided into good or bad; their race, religion, nationality don't matter.

I was brought up to believe that a person must be rescued when drowning, regardless of religion and nationality.

I still carry the marks on my body of what those "German supermen" did to me then. I was sentenced to death.

Humanity has understood nothing. Religious, tribal, national wars continue. The world continues to be in a sea of blood.

The world can be better if there's love, tolerance and humility.

I was taught that if you see a person drowning, you must jump into the water to save them, whether you can swim or not.

Heroes do extraordinary things. What I did was not an extraordinary thing. It was normal.

Over a half-century has passed since the hell of the Holocaust, but its spectre still hangs over the world and doesn't allow us to forget.

I was brought up to believe that a person must be rescued when drowning, regardless of religion and nationality. The term ‘hero’ irritates me greatly – the opposite is true – I continue to have pangs of conscience that I did so little.