Sisters separated during WWII who survived Nazi labor camps cherish final reunion at ages 96 and 100

World War II left an enduring mark on humanity in devastating ways. Beyond the staggering loss of human life, the war also brought profound deprivation and the destruction of natural resources. Countless people suffered unimaginably as the war extended beyond the battlefields and unleashed brutality on ordinary civilians. Sisters Helena and Barbara Stefaniak were among the millions whose worlds were turned upside down after the outbreak of World War II. 

The sisters lost their mother first. "When the sisters were old enough, their widowed father sent them to a boarding school at a convent in Warsaw, Poland. They left home together, but eventually, their nearly four-year age gap forced them apart. In 1939, Helena started a higher level of schooling at a different location, while Barbara stayed behind to continue her classes," according to PEOPLE.  In September 1939, Poland was overtaken by the Nazis. One day, Helena didn't return home from her studies at the convent. As it turned out, a soldier stopped her in the streets of Warsaw and checked her identification. Upon realizing that Helena was old enough to work, she was forced into a boxcar full of other people removed from the country, and transported to a forced labor camp in Augsburg, Germany. 

It wasn't long before Barbara, too, ended up in a different work camp than her sister. The sisters spent about three years working in different camps until they were liberated by American intervention. Neither Helena nor Barbara knew if the other was still alive, but through extraordinary circumstances, they eventually found each other in Germany. "She opened up the door and closed [it]. Because when she left me, I was 16. And when she found me, I was 19 almost. I grew up. I was a woman already," Barbara, now 96, recalled to the outlet exclusively, more than 80 years later. 

The two sisters immigrated to the United States separately but in the same year. They were accompanied by their husbands and settled on the East Coast in 1947. They visited each other frequently and rebuilt the ties that were once broken when they were forced apart. In 1953, Helena had a daughter named Helen Fee, who grew up and eventually crossed the country to build a life in Montana. Coincidentally, both the sisters' husbands passed away in 2017. Fee then moved her aging mother to live on the opposite coast with her, where she could pay her frequent visits. 

Sadly, due to Helena's declining health, the two were not able to meet in person as much. However, with the help of Wish of a Lifetime, a non-profit that helps elderly adults make their dreams a reality, the sisters were able to enjoy each other's company once again. "This is the last time probably we see each other," Barbara shared. Her sister agrees, "I mean, our age and our health. This is 100% the last time." As the two sat together and reminisced, they realized how there was a time when they never even imagined leaving the work camp. "Some people have always pleasant life. We didn't, not from 1939 to 1950. Not all of the time," says Barbara. "I never thought, never, that I'd leave [the work camp]."