Ola Breisjøberget lived with his family close to the Swedish border. The whole family volunteered as border guides, helping to take Jewish people and resistance fighters to safety in neutral Sweden. At the age of 19, Ola Breisjøberget led most of the refugees to the border with his horse.
In early December 1942, Breisjøberget accompanied a group of 14 children to the border. They came from a Jewish children’s home in Oslo and were fleeing to Sweden with their caretaker Nina Hasvoll. Since the escape route had to be changed several times for safety reasons, the group spent eight hours walking through deep snow.
In 2006 the escape helpers were honored by the Israeli Holocaust Memorial Center Yad Vashem as Righteous Among the Nations for rescuing the children. Ola Breisjøberget was the only member of the group still alive to accept the honor.