Imagine, for a moment, that a man saves the lives of 669 people.\u00a0 Then imagine that his good deeds remain hidden for almost 50 years \u2013 even from his wife.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t have to imagine that; it\u2019s not fiction.\u00a0 Such a man died one week ago today.<\/p>\n
His name was Sir Nicholas Winton, of Great Britain.\u00a0 In late 1938, he was a young stockbroker.\u00a0 He went to continental Europe on holiday.<\/p>\n
What happened next was . . . remarkable.\u00a0 In many ways.<\/p>\n
Go here<\/a>, here<\/a>, and here<\/a> for additional details.\u00a0 I think you\u2019ll be impressed – and likely awed.\u00a0 You might also want to have a tissue handy.<\/p>\n Afterwards, Winton kept quiet about what he\u2019d done for nearly 50 years<\/em>.\u00a0 The title of this article is how Winton described his actions after they’d become public.<\/p>\n That to me is nearly as impressive as the acts themselves.<\/p>\n Sir Nicholas Winton passed away on 1 July 2015.\u00a0 His last birthday was on 19 May of this year; it was his 106th.<\/p>\n Rest in peace, Sir Winton.\u00a0 Rest in well-earned peace.<\/p>\n . . .<\/strong><\/p>\n Postscript<\/span>:\u00a0 Ironically, Winton has never received one honor that you might expect.\u00a0 Although Winton was British and was baptized – and presumably raised – as a Christian, his parents were originally Jewish.\u00a0 They emigrated from Germany to England 2 years before Winton was born; they converted to Christianity after arrival in England. <\/em><\/p>\n The fact that Winton’s parents were originally Jewish apparently prevents him from being declared a \u201cRighteous Gentile\u201d by Israel and so honored at Yad Vashem.\u00a0 Go figure.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"