Our History

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The Committee was formed by a group of Polish emigres living in the USA who wanted to support the most vulnerable groups of compatriots in war-torn Poland. The Lilpop sisters – Halina Arturowa Rodzińska, Felicja Krance, and Aniela Masłowska, Izabella Maria de Landsberg and Dorothy McHugh – took on this challenge. 

They established the Committee in New York City with a focus to help rebuild the campus at Laski, which was the largest school for blind children in Poland. It was ably run by Zofie “Zula” Morowska who dedicated her life to the school and its children. She was its administrator until she passed at 105.

At first, help came from the American Red Cross, and the famous blind-deaf activist Helen Keller, as well as the American Foundation for Overseas Blind. Once these efforts began, donations from private individuals and organizations started to regularly reach the Laski school, where the reconstruction of old buildings and the planning of new buildings was in progress.

The initial 10 years after the war were very difficult, with resources remaining scarce. Every few months, various goods and products were sent on the SS Batory and American ships to Poland. These included clothing, shoes, food, medicines, medical supplies, dental supplies, musical instruments, Braille music scores, school supplies, and extremely important raw materials for learning and work in the Laski workshops like brushes, wool, hair, bristles, rice straw, etc. 

Over the 1960s and 1970s, the Committee continued to attract new donors and volunteers, and began an ambitious construction program to entirely upgrade and modernize the Laski campus. This ultimately involved the construction of over 17 structures at the Laski school, including multiple classrooms, workshops, a library, a clinic, dormitories, stables, a library, and administrative buildings. 

The school, at its peak, taught over 550 children and was one of the largest schools for Blind children in the Western world. The Committee provided educational programs and internships for teachers in the United States, shipments of supplies, and support of new educational methods.

The work at Committee continued to be managed by Mrs. Felicja Krance, and a group of volunteers gathered around her, and then later by her sisters Mrs. Aniela Mieczysławska and then Mrs. Halina Rodzińska. Mrs. Halina, thanks to her extensive contacts in the United States and acquaintance with many prominent Poles, as well as knowledge of fundraising principles gained during the war, was able to serve the Committee well. 

In the 1980s, the Committee expanded its scope beyond Laski to the entire blind community in Poland. This was during a period of Martial Law in Poland, where the difficult conditions were felt across the country. 

The Committee established contacts with other organizations for the blind in the country to continue it's work during these difficult times. The new projects included the creation of a home for blind elderly women, a home for blind children in Warsaw, a recreation facility for the Blind near the Baltic seashore, and scores of other projects across the country. During this period of deprivation, the Committee organized direct material support including sending several containers full of shoes and clothing to Poland that was gathered here in the United States. 

Work in the Committee involved thousands of hand-written appeal letters, radio broadcasts, organization of balls and exhibitions. All these actions were organized by volunteers with great dedication and enthusiasm to help the Blind in Poland.

Through the “Work for the Blind” Foundation, the Committee established a unique, world-class Agricultural Vocational Center in Stanisławowo, which became a place of work, social activation, and new life for over 60 people with disabilities. Stanisławowo delivers lunches to children from nearby schools, runs a farm, and also provides catering services for many companies and institutions. 

Thanks to the Committee, a modern center for vocational activation of people with disabilities was established, as well as an efficient, modern production company. A modern kitchen, vegetable storage, and modern machines and equipment have made Stanisławowo a model example of creating jobs for people with disabilities, which receives constant support from the Mazovian Voivode and the Marshal of Mazovia.

The Committee is now led by Peter Swiderski, Stanislaw’s son, who served for forty years in various roles in the Committee before assuming leadership after Stanislaw’s passing in 2021. He is supported, in turn, by his children Andrew and Sophia, as well as a small, dedicated team of volunteers.