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 Holo-
caust. 
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’ Remem-
brance 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 collabo-
rators during World War II; 
Whereas approximately 60,000 Jews were murdered in Bes-
sarabia, 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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•HCON 256 IH 
were forced over the river to the Transnistria region, 
where approximately 120,000 Jews perished; 
Whereas according to the Elie Wiesel Commission that sub-
mitted 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, Roma-
nia, served as a reserve officer in the Romanian military 
and was assigned the tasks of presenting military au-
thorities 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 Roma-
nia; 
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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•HCON 256 IH 
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, correct-
ness. 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 his-
tory; 
Whereas some individuals still seek to deny the greatest trag-
edy 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 de-
serve recognition and honor for their selfless acts to save 
innocent lives: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That Congress— 
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•HCON 256 IH 
(1) honors and memorializes Theodor Criveanu 
for his compassion and brave efforts to rescue inno-
cent people who were being persecuted, and for 
being named by Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Mar-
tyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority, as Right-
eous Among the Nations for his heroic efforts to 
save Romanian Jews during the Holocaust; and 
(2) promotes education to further the under-
standing and preservation of the legacy of the rescue 
acts of the righteous gentiles who risked their lives 
to save innocent Jews, with hopes that, by remem-
bering and revering their heroic acts, future genera-
tions will be inspired by their deeds. 
Æ 
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