She died, at the age of almost 102, Wanda Poltawskaclose friend of Saint John Paul II. Born in 1921 she was a psychiatrist and long-time friend of the family Karol Wojtyla. In 2009, Acistampa recalls, he made public the letters he had received from the Pope over the years, which are part of an intense correspondence between Poltawska and Wojtyla over a period of 55 years.
Even more evocative is the book written by Wanda herself which recounts in first person her meeting with Karol Wojtyla who would become her spiritual guide and brotherly friend, so much so that they called each other brother and sister.
Wanda Poltawska is one of the people who were closest to John Paul II, she listened to him and advised him, she was present at the moment of his death.
The two met immediately after the Second World War. Having become friends, they collaborated in numerous initiatives together. First in Krakow, in the cultural and social activities of the diocese, especially for family problems; and, after the election of Karol Wojtyla as Pontiff, in Rome, where Poltawska became a member of the «Pontifical Council for the Family», consultant of the «Pontifical Council for health workers» and member of the «Pontifical Academy for Life». Her friendship with Wojtyla was also strengthened by a miracle from Padre Pio who healed the woman from a tumor. It was 1962 and it was Karol Wojtyla who wrote a letter to Padre Pio.