Witold Wójcik helps flood victims from Stronie Śląskie

When an 80-year-old woman says that the worst thing she experienced happened less than a month ago, no recordings can convey what she saw with her own eyes.

– “Either you stay or you accept death.” So I gathered myself and went, and the paramedic took me to the fire truck – says Zofia Drąg, an 80-year-old resident of Stronie Śląskie. So far, she hasn't returned home. It is still unclear whether her block is safe. Others also sleep with family, friends, or hotels that offer help to the residents of Stronie Śląskie.

Young people have something to do to avoid thinking – cleaning. For seniors from Stronie Śląskie, cleaning and rebuilding is beyond their strength. – We left this mud and water there – says Elżbieta Kling, a resident of Stronie Śląskie.

You can fall into despair, but today they are smiling. First time. – People walking on dry sidewalks, on dry roads, their faces are as unworried as ours, and this told me that there is a world that will also come back to us – says Elżbieta Kling.

47 seniors were rescued from the flood and worries by Mr. Witold Wójcik, an entrepreneur from Nowe Miasto nad Pilicą near Grójec. – When it comes to seniors, the mayor himself told me: they come to him, they cry, and this is something that urgently needed to be healed – points out Witold Wójcik, an entrepreneur and journalist.

While others are most worried about the youngest, Mr. Witek, together with Paweł, Monika and other friends, took older flood victims to a “green school”. They are in Grójec, they were in Łódź, they are going to Warsaw.

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– Some of them only had their first warm meal after three weeks – reports Monika Woźniak, director of the Grójec Cultural Center. – We may not look like typical flood victims, but this place and the people who are here have done so much – says Barbara Staniszewska, a resident of Stronie Śląskie.

A week-long trip won't rebuild your house, but it will rebuild your morale. – They felt special for a moment that someone noticed them in this tragedy – says Urszula Nuckowska from the Municipal Social Welfare Center in Stronie Śląskie.

When the war broke out in Ukraine, Mr. Witold immediately accepted 80 refugee women with children. – I have nine-seater cars to school, there is no problem transporting them – said Mr. Witold in 2022.

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He also saw no problem in converting the bus into a field hospital. He works on the front line. Because he had more ideas than possibilities, he launched the Dobro Pomoc Foundation. – It's life itself that drives it. I'll be honest: it takes a moment, nothing more – says Mr. Witek.

– This is a new beginning and let's hope that something like this will be rebuilt in us – sums up Barbara Staniszewska.