Ryszard's tale of bravery told: Marcia shares her dad's story of war-torn Poland

Marcia who lives at Mallabula has since written and self-published the book which she titled Ryszard in honour of her late father.

Ryszard is a book that tells a compelling tale of two Polish boys interned in a slave labour camp only to escape.

The book is based on the true accounts of her father's experiences of living in Poland in the 1940's.

An art teacher for 26 years, Marcia said she decided to write the story about her Polish father, Ryszard, when he passed away in 2020, aged 93.

"Dad didn't start to talk about his time in Poland until he was in his sixties," she said.

Marcia described her dad as a clever man and said he discovered a Hitler's uniform while scavenging the rubble for food.

"The camp got bombed so my dad took off through the gates, hitched a run on the back of a truck and went to this place in Berlin, put on the uniform and started to parade as a German boy," she said.

Ryszard finally got to the border of Belgium which was where the Allies were and Marcia said he was reunited with his brother who was caught at the beginning of the war.

"His mother didn't know if either of the boys were alive or dead, she would light candles at church and pray for them."

Ryszard and his brother were then recruited for the Polish army and Marcia said they fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

"Dad ended up receiving the Polish Cross of Valour for his role in rescuing the Americans," she said.

When the war first started, Ryszard had just turned 13, he was 16 when he was in the camp and 17-years-old when he escaped from the camp.

"He saw people hanged, people shot, he saw such horrific things as a young boy," Marcia said.

Her father would always tell Marcia to write down his stories and she said she had mixed feelings about writing the book because it was quite a daunting task for her.

"It was raw and challenging and when I finished it and it was published and the book came in the mail, I felt so much reward in a way that I had actually succeeded and I think dad would have been very proud," she said.

"My book is based on my father's story but it's not a biography."

Marcia is also currently writing a second book and said it's a sequel to Ryszard.

"The second book is called Barbara and it's about Ryszard coming to Cornwell and meeting my mum Barbara," she said.

Copies of Ryszard are available at Readers Retreat, Salamander Bay and Raymond Terrace libraries, the Tilligerry Emporium and it is also available on Amazon.