Servant of God Ivanka Škrabec Novak

Ivanka Škrabec Novak (17 March 1915 – 4 June 1942) was a Slovenian teacher. She was martyred by Communists while six months pregnant because of her devout Catholic faith and opposition to Communism. She is currently in process of beatification by the Episcopal Conference of Slovenia. Her current title is Servant of God. Ivanka was born in a devout Catholic Slovenian family on 17 March 1915, in Hrovača. Her mother was farmer Angela Arko, and her father was farmer Janez Škrabec, nephew of linguist Stanislav Škrabec. She had eleven brothers and sisters. After primary school she started studying at Ursuline teacher training college in Ljubljana, where she graduated in 1936. In 1936 Ivanka moved to Pišece and started working as a teacher in primary school there. She was employed there for three years. In autumn of 1939 she moved to Sodražica and started working as a teacher at primary school there, where she remained employed until her death. She soon become active in Sodražica parish and in cultural life in the town. In 1941 Slovenia was occupied by Italy and Germany. Already poor residents of Sodražica become even more impoverished. Ivanka tried to help the poor students in her classes as much as she could. She gave money to their families, bought lunches for kids who didn't have them, and visited them if they were sick. At that time she met France Novak, a chemistry teacher and a devout Catholic, who had fled Nazi-occupied Upper Carniola. She married him in early December in Ljubljana. The young couple settled in Sodražica, where Ivanka continued her work of a teacher. The couple's outspoken Catholic beliefs and criticism of the Communist-led Liberation Front (OF) and Ivanka's influence on the children made them targets of Communists. In the morning of May 28, 1942, following the withdrawal of Italian forces, Communist Partisans entered Sodražica. Ivanka's husband managed to escape, but Ivanka, six months pregnant, was arrested in the afternoon.