A ceremony was held in the town of Powiewiórka in Lithuania to consecrate the tombstone of Corporal Napoleon Ciuksza— a Polish hero and soldier of the Home Army. The event was attended by Adam Siwek, the Director of the IPN Office for Commemorating the Struggle and Martyrdom, and Dr. habil. Krzysztof Sychowicz, Director of the IPN Branch in Białystok.

The ceremony began with a Holy Mass at the Church of St. Casimir in Powiewiórka, celebrated for the repose of Corporal Ciuksza and the Homeland. Following the service, the participants proceeded to the parish cemetery, where Napoleon Ciuksza is laid to rest.

“Our presence here is a testament to the fulfillment of our duty as a national community, as Poles, to pay tribute to a soldier of independent Poland - one who paid the highest price for the freedom of his homeland,” emphasized Director Adam Siwek in his address.

The Director of the Office for Commemorating the Struggle and Martyrdom stressed that the effort to locate and commemorate fallen heroes remains one of the most important obligations of the state and the national community. He noted that many still await the restoration of memory and a rightful place of burial:

“We will continue to carry out this mission, as there are still many who await discovery, a dignified burial, and the commemoration they deserve.”

Subsequently, Father Włodzimierz Sołowiej, of the Parish of St. Casimir in Powiewiórka, offered a prayer and consecrated the tombstone. The ceremony concluded with participants laying flowers and lighting candles at the hero’s grave.

The event was organized by the Institute of National Remembrance and the District Office in Podbrodzie. Among those in attendance were relatives of Napoleon Ciuksza, the District Head of Podbrodzie Ana Zingerienė, Andrzej Dudziński, Minister-Counsellor at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Vilnius, as well as representatives of local authorities, uniformed services, associations, youth, and scouts. The ceremony was accompanied by the banner of the Vilnius District of the Home Army.

Following the ceremony, Directors Adam Siwek and Krzysztof Sychowicz lit candles at the graves of Napoleon Ciuksza’s parents -Salomea Ciuksza and Michał Ciuksza- as well as at the grave of Platoon Sergeant Witold Szczemirski of the 13th Vilnius Uhlan Regiment.

During their stay in Vilnius, the IPN delegation marked graves entered into the register of veterans of the struggle for Poland’s freedom and independence with plaques reading “Veteran’s Grave.”

Among those buried in the marked graves are:

• the participants in the Revolutions of 1848 and 19th-century national liberation uprisings: Michał Innocenty Burkhardt, Kazimierz Cytowicz, Aleksander Dalewski, Feliks Jurkiewicz, Franciszek Nowicki, Aleksander Oskierka, Franciszek Siekierzyński, Stanisław Staniewicz, and Szymon Surewicz;

• members of the Polish Military Organization, Self-Defense units, and soldiers of the Polish Army who took part in the Polish–Bolshevik War: Janina Maria Burkhardt, Lieutenant Colonel Antoni Doboszyński, Captain Stanisław Gogoliński, Major Mikołaj Hanula, Major Wacław Jasiński, Lieutenant Bogusław Komornicki, Second Lieutenant Wacław Konopko, Lieutenant Władysław Lempke, Lieutenant Antoni Lisowski, Major Antoni Feliks Mikulski, Major General Stefan Mokrzecki, Lieutenant Marian Pancerzyński, Lieutenant Tadeusz Rodakiewicz, Ludwik Sokołowski, Major Witold Trubicki, Captain Tadeusz Wąsowski, Antoni Wiwulski, and Corporal Stanisław Zawisza;

• a soldier of the Home Army and participant in Operation “Ostra Brama”: Lieutenant Władysław Korkuć, aka “Robak” and “Korkociąg.”