The Schefflers had escaped the liquidation of the Jewish ghetto by hiding in a truck filled with Jewish corpses. When the truck emptied its load in a mass grave, the Schefflers made their escape. After being turned away by several other families, they came to seek shelter with the Zahaikiewicz family. There they stayed hidden, at tremendous risk to the family, until the liberation.
Orest: "Our father somehow thought we would make it through. He believed in people."