“It is impossible to describe what happened”, says Marcin’s widow. Then she becomes emotional. “I want to thank everyone so much.”
Breadwinner of the family
Marcin was a labor migrant in the Netherlands at a flower bulb company in North Holland. His family lives in the Polish village of Kazimierz Biskupi in central Poland. Monika and Marcin have three children together: Martyna of 12 years old, Kamila of 10 years old and 2-year-old Mateusz. The family is not well off, Marcin was the breadwinner of the family.
–
–
To transport the man’s body to Poland and to pay for the funeral, several were added fundraisers set up. The target amount of 300,000 euros has now been reached. More than the family could ever dream of.
But Marcin is not coming back with it. “Marcin was such a good person. He spent every free moment with the children. They played games together and he joked with them. They loved him,” says Monika emotionally.
–
–
“As soon as my husband came home from work, he stretched his arms out to my son Mateusz. No matter how bad his mood was, Mateusz always got a smile on his face.”
Everything for the kids
Marcin was away from home a lot for his work. Now he would stay in the Netherlands for six weeks. He would be home next week. “The kids always missed him terribly when he had to travel. They always asked, ‘When is daddy coming home?’ or they were looking forward to a call from him from abroad. ”
“He was our best friend and dear father, who would sacrifice absolutely everything for his children. Even his life.”
–
–
Monika and Marcin were married for fourteen years. And according to Monika’s mother, where the whole family lived, her daughter and Marcin were still madly in love. “They called a lot. Even at the last minute just before he died,” says mother-in-law Krystyna.
The last bell
Marcin was on the phone with his wife last week when he realized there was children were in need. The last thing he said to her was, “There’s something going on with children in the water, I have to hang up.”
The line dropped, and Monika didn’t know what had happened to Marcin for two hours, says mother-in-law Krystyna. “Monika called me then, and she immediately felt that something was wrong. She was called by a Dutchman on the beach, but did not understand what was going on because she does not speak Dutch.”
–
–
“I can see from Monika that she is still so in shock: she has lost weight and doesn’t talk much.” For a moment Krystyna swallows. “Marcin was such a sweet man, also to me as a mother-in-law.”
‘Only one daddy’
“This money will help enormously. My daughter can now buy her own apartment with the children. And in this way the children have a future at least. The eldest two girls already realize very well what has happened. They keep crying. their mother told 12-year-old Martyna: there is only one daddy for us forever. ”
Marcin’s body has now arrived at the family’s village. He will be buried on Tuesday. The family is only just starting to realize what’s going on. In addition to grief, gratitude predominates. “The fundraising efforts that have started, the Polish embassy in The Hague, and all the people who send us messages. It’s overwhelming,” says Krystynad gratefully.
–
–
