IV 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 256 

Honoring Theodor Criveanu for being named by Yad Vashem, the Holocaust 

Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, as Righteous Among the 

Nations for his heroic efforts to save Romanian Jews during the Holocaust. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 13, 2007 

Mr. HASTINGS of Florida (for himself, Mr. BURTON of Indiana, Ms. LINDA

T. SA ́NCHEZ of California, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 

LINDER, Mr. KIRK, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. GONZALEZ, and Mr. WEXLER) 

submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the 

Committee on Foreign Affairs 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Honoring Theodor Criveanu for being named by Yad 

Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, as Righteous Among the Nations for 

his heroic efforts to save Romanian Jews during the 

Holocaust. 

Whereas 6,000,000 European Jews and other targeted 

groups were killed by German Nazis and their collaborators during World War II; 

Whereas approximately 60,000 Jews were murdered in Bessarabia, Romania and Bukovina, Romania by Romanian 

and German military units, assisted by the local police 

and residents, and the Jews remaining in those towns 


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were forced over the river to the Transnistria region, 

where approximately 120,000 Jews perished; 

Whereas according to the Elie Wiesel Commission that submitted its report to the President of Romania in 2004, 

it is estimated that between 280,000 and 380,000 Jews 

were murdered by the Romanians during the Holocaust; 

Whereas Theodor Criveanu, a lawyer from Brashov, Romania, served as a reserve officer in the Romanian military 

and was assigned the tasks of presenting military authorities with a list of Jews who would be required to 

work in the ghetto, instead of being deported to 

Transnistria, and issuing work permits to individuals on 

that list; 

Whereas Theodor Criveanu defied Nazi orders and secretly 

issued work permits in numbers that exceeded the work 

permit quota, and to Jews who were not essential to the 

workforce, disregarding the dangerous risk such actions 

posed to his own life; 

Whereas the work permits illegally issued by Theodor 

Criveanu served as a passport to life for many Romanian 

Jews; 

Whereas Theodor Criveanu married Malvina Hefter, the 

daughter of one of the Jews he saved, and in 1945, they 

had a son, Ze’ev (Willie) Criveanu; 

Whereas in 1988, Theodor Criveanu passed away in Romania; 

Whereas in 1963, Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs’ and 

Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, initiated a worldwide 

project to grant the title of Righteous Among the Nations 

to individuals who were not Jewish and who risked their 

lives to rescue and protect Jews during the Holocaust; 


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Whereas more than 21,000 gentiles, including 53 Romanians, 

have been honored as Righteous Among the Nations; 

Whereas on August 8, 2007, Yad Vashem, the Holocaust 

Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, named 

Theodore Criveanu as Righteous Among the Nations, 

posthumously honoring him for his courageous work to 

block the deportation of Romanian Jews to Nazi death 

camps; 

Whereas at the ceremony to name Theodor Criveanu as 

Righteous Among the Nations, his son, Willie Criveanu, 

stated ‘‘My father’s life was based on justness, correctness. He was a great humanitarian, that was his 

nature . . . . He was a gift from God for my mother’s 

family and to so many more’’; 

Whereas the Holocaust is the greatest tragedy of the Jewish 

people and the most extreme act of anti-Semitism in history; 

Whereas some individuals still seek to deny the greatest tragedy of the Jewish people, demonstrating the need for the 

2,000-year old fight against anti-Semitism to continue; 

Whereas there has been a reemergence of anti-Semitism in 

recent years around the globe, and hate speech, neo-Nazi 

activities, and targeted violence against Jews and their 

institutions are becoming increasingly commonplace; and 

Whereas Theodor Criveanu and other righteous gentiles deserve recognition and honor for their selfless acts to save 

innocent lives: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 

2 concurring), That Congress— 


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1 (1) honors and memorializes Theodor Criveanu 

2 for his compassion and brave efforts to rescue inno3 cent people who were being persecuted, and for 

4 being named by Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Mar5 tyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, as Right6 eous Among the Nations for his heroic efforts to 

7 save Romanian Jews during the Holocaust; and 

8 (2) promotes education to further the under9 standing and preservation of the legacy of the rescue 

10 acts of the righteous gentiles who risked their lives 

11 to save innocent Jews, with hopes that, by remem12 bering and revering their heroic acts, future genera13 tions will be inspired by their deeds. 

Æ 


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