Johann Gruber
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Johann Gruber (October 20, 1889 – April 7, 1944), also known as "Papa Gruber" and "The Saint of Gusen", was an Austrian Roman Catholic priest who was imprisoned in Concentration Camp Gusen I from 1940 until he was murdered by the camp commandant on Holy Friday 1944.[1] In the concentration camp, Gruber helped many others survive by raising funds from outside the camp and bribing the SS men and kapos in order to organise the delivery of food to starving inmates.[1]
Johann Gruber was born in Tegernbach near Grieskirchen, Austria.[2] When his parents died, he became a pupil at the Petrinum Linz, a catholic private school where he received his Matura. In 1910, he joined the seminary in Linz. Following his ordination he served for several years as a priest until he began to study philosophy in Vienna. He finished his studies with a PhD in 1923 and became a teacher and director of an institution for the Blind in Linz.[3][4]
