Ku itariki ya 31 Werurwe 2024, Mushiki wacu Hermine Schmidt yapfuye afite imyaka 98. Ni we Muhamya wa Yehova wari usigaye mu Bahamya bafungiwe mu bigo by’Abanazi byakoranyirizwagamo imfungwa bazira ukwizera kwabo.

Hermine yavutse ku itariki ya 13 Ugushyingo 1925, avukira mu mujyi wa Gdańsk, ubu ukaba uri muri Polonye. Ababyeyi be ari bo Oskar na Frieda Koschmieder, bari Abahamya ba Yehova. Bari barafashije umukobwa wabo kugira ukwizera gukomeye. Mu mwaka wa 1939, ingabo z’Abanazi zigaruriye Gdańsk, zitangira gutoteza bikabije Abahamya ba Yehova. Muri icyo gihe, Hermine yiyeguriye Yehova maze abatizwa ku itariki ya 2 Gicurasi 1942, afite imyaka 16.

Umwaka wakurikiyeho, muri Kamena 1943, Abanazi bafashe Hermine wari ufite imyaka 17 y’amavuko, maze baramufunga. Yongeye gufatwa muri Mata 1944, noneho yoherezwa mu kigo cyakoranyirizwagamo imfungwa cy’i Stutthof. Hari igihe Hermine yatekereje kuri ibyo bihe biteye ubwoba, maze aravuga ati: “Ntibyoroshye kwiyumvisha ibyabaye. Twarasuzuguwe kandi turababazwa cyane. Abapolisi bakoze ibishoboka byose kugira ngo batume nihakana ukwizera kwanjye. Ntabwo navutse ndi intwari, ahubwo nari umukobwa usanzwe nk’abandi. Ariko nari nzi icyo nagombaga gukora ku bijyanye n’ubudahemuka bwanjye no gukomeza kumvira umutimanama. Iyo ubaho wumvira umutimanama wawe, ugira amahoro kandi ukabana amahoro n’Imana.”

Nyuma y’umwaka umwe, muri Mata 1945, ingabo z’u Burusiya zarimo zisatira inkambi ya Stutthof. Abarinzi b’Abadage bahatiye benshi mu mfungwa kujya mu bwato kugira ngo babahungishe banyuze mu nyanja aho kubemerera kubohorwa n’ingabo z’u Burusiya. Muri Gicurasi 1945, Hermine n’abandi 370 bararokowe igihe ubwato bwabo bwageraga ku kirwa cya Møn cyo muri Danemarike. Bidatinze, Hermine yongeye guhura n’ababyeyi be.

Mu mwaka wa 1947, Hermine yashakanye na Horst Schmidt. Horst yari yaranze kujya mu gisirikare kandi yakoraga akazi ko kohereza ibitabo by’imfashanyigisho za Bibiliya mu gihe umurimo w’Abahamya ba Yehova wari warahagaritswe. Yaraburanishijwe, akatirwa urwo gupfa, kandi afungirwa muri gereza ya Brandenburg-Görden. Ku itariki ya 27 Mata 1945, gereza yari afungiyemo yarafashwe mbere gato y’uko umunsi we wo kwicwa ugera. Horst na Hermine babanye imyaka igera kuri 63 kugeza ubwo Horst yapfuye mu mwaka wa 2010.

Schmidts n’umugore we bamaze imyaka myinshi babwira abandi ibyababayeho. Mu kiganiro cyakozwe mu mwaka wa 1998, Hermine yavuze ukuntu yakomeje kubera Imana indahemuka agira ati: “Nubwo yari inzira itoroshye kunyuramo, ariko yari nziza cyane. Nta kintu na kimwe cyari kumbuza kuyinyuramo.”

Dushimishwa n’ukuntu Hermine yakomeje kuba indahemuka igihe yari ahanganye n’ibigeragezo. Nimureke twigane ukwizera kwe, maze twiyemeze kuba intwari no kwiringira ko Yehova buri gihe arinda abamubera indahemuka.—Zaburi 31:23, 24.