- A History of Care and Kindness
17 November 2009
By Judith Martin
The high regard in which the Army is held by New Zealand’s Polish community was evident recently when a delegation of local Polish people visited the Chief of Army, Major General Rhys Jones.
The General was presented with a copy of New Zealand’s First Refugees, Pahiatua’s Polish Children during the visit. The book is a record of what is seen as a unique episode in New Zealand’s history—the arrival of 732 refugee children and their guardians and their successful integration into New Zealand society.
The New Zealand Army and the Polish community go back a long way; soldiers returning from World War II on the USS General Randall in 1944 helped look after the Polish refugee children, many of them orphans, and their 100 or so guardians.
When the children arrived in Wellington they were taken by train to Pahiatua station, from where 33 Army trucks transported them to an old internment camp, which became the Polish Children’s Camp. The camp was administered by the New Zealand Army, and all Army maintenance staff took orders from the camp commandant Major Foxley. It is remembered by the Polish children as a delightful refuge from the war, where they were cared for, had fun, and encouraged to thrive in their new homeland.
The children attended school, and outside of school hours they helped with cleaning and planted vegetable gardens. To help them get acquainted with the New Zealand way of life the Army and the Catholic community collected invitations from New Zealand families for the Polish children and adults to spend holidays with them.
It is 65 years since the children arrived in New Zealand. The book, New Zealand’s First Refugees was published by the Polish Children’s Reunion Committee, and edited by Wellingtonian Adam Manterys, who is the son of one of the refugees, Stanislaw Manterys. It explains the background to the children’s arrival in New Zealand, and records the stories of dozens of the refugees, and those of their own children, and other New Zealanders who remember the small refugees. It also contains a significant collection of photographs.
Accepting the book from the delegation, MAJGEN Jones said he was aware of the history of the Polish children, and the significant contribution the Polish community had made to New Zealand society. There were also strong military links; the Polish Army had fought alongside New Zealanders in Cassino, Italy during World War II, and a Polish Army Brigade was now based in Afghanistan where New Zealand troops are serving.