Hendrik Grootemarsink
| Geslacht: | Man | |
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| Geboren: | 31 Jan 1906 | onbekend doen |
| Overleden: | 30 Jan 1987 | |
| Aantekeningen: | Last Name: Grootemarsink First Name: Hendrik Date of Birth: 1906 Date of death: 30/01/1987 Rescuer's fate: survived Nationality: THE NETHERLANDS Religion: CALVINIST Gender: Male Profession: FARMER Place during the war: Lemelerveld, Overijssel, The Netherlands Rescue Place: Lemelerveld, Overijssel, The Netherlands Rescue mode: Hiding File number: File from the Collection of the Righteous Among the Nations Department (M.31.2/12609) The Jewish Deen family Levi, Marianna (née de Jong), and their six children lived in Loosdrecht, the Netherlands. One day, in the beginning of July 1942, four of the six children received an order to report for working in Germany. The family, who had watched the growing anti-Jewish measures by the Germans, understood that the time had come to save themselves. Among their friends were Johannes van Zutphen (b. 1863), who was called Jan, and his wife, Bernardina (b. 1895), who was called Dinnie. Jan was a well-known person who was active in the diamond industry and in directing a sanatorium for tuberculosis; he was also an active resistance member. He found a hiding place for more than 100 Jews and arranged for their food coupons and false identity cards. When the Germans wanted to raid the sanatorium and take away all the Jewish patients, he and his fellow resistance members quickly distributed them to several hiding places, thus saving their lives. Jan also took care of the Deen family. He found hiding places for all of them, and Marianna was taken into his own home. There she found warm friendship and care. Marianna helped Dinnie in the household. Sometimes her son Lou came to visit her for a weekend because he was lonely. Lou also stayed with the Van Zutphens for a while, until Jan found him a new hiding place and brought him by train to this new address in Hilversum. Needless to say, this was extremely dangerous. Dinnie was a brave woman: she brought Levi Deen by bicycle to his hiding place. Marianna's daughter Erica (b. 1924) acquired a false identity card with the name Henny van der Linden. Jan van Zutphen took her to Reverend Cornelis Keers (b. 1907), who lived with his wife, Maria (née Bokhorst), in Lemele, in the Dutch province of Overijssel. They lived next to the Grote Kerk (Big Church). According to their son's testimony after the war, they arranged hiding places for about 40 Jews, sheltering them in their home until a permanent hiding place was found for them. They also found Erica a new hiding place. Cornelis personally took her to the Grootemarsink family in Lemelerveld. Hendrik (b. 1906) and Willemina (b. 1911) Grootemarsink lived on a farm called Genista. Another Jewish girl also found shelter with the Grootemarsinks. A farm was a perfect hiding place for Jews, and the Germans knew that. They raided the area several times. One time Erica had a very narrow escape. On Sunday, June 27, 1943, the Germans suddenly arrived to search the farm. Erica quickly hid in a pile of straw. The Germans were very close but did not find her. They did, however, find a coat in the house, on which holes could be seen in the shape of a Star of David that had once been sewn to it. The Germans understood that there had to be Jews on the farm, and they arrested Hendrik Grootemarsink. The other girl had fled by bicycle, but the Germans caught and arrested her. Because there was not enough room in the vehicle, the Germans freed Hendrik soon afterward. After these events Erica, terrified, hid for a couple of days in the fields. Reverend Keers came to fetch her and brought her to his sister and her husband, Christina (née Keers, b. 1906) and Petrus Visser (b. 1897). Petrus, who was called Piet, was also a reverend, serving a Protestant community in Apeldoorn. They lived next to the church, and in times of danger Erica could hide in the church basement. But the Germans' searches intensified, and this hiding place was no longer safe. Erica had to move on once more, this time to Jan (b. 1904) and Hillegonda (née Jonker, b. 1903) Keers. Jan Keers was Cornelis Keers's brother and was a reverend in Borculo. There Erica found a warm, safe home, in which she stayed until the liberation. She helped the Keers couple take care of their children. After the war the Deen family was reunited, except for two of the older children, who had been caught and taken to Sobibor, where they died. One of the children, Sonja Deen, was active in the resistance during her time in hiding. She was arrested shortly before the liberation and sent to Westerbork, but there were no more transports, and she was liberated from there. Erica stayed in close contact with her rescuers. She was married in 1947, and in 1949 she immigrated to Australia, where she had three children. On May 26, 2013, Yad Vashem recognized Johannes and Bernardina (Greger) van Zutphen, Cornelis and Maria (Bokhorst) Keers, Hendrik and Willemina (Schuurman) Grootemarsink, Petrus and Christina Sophia (Keers) Visser and Jan G. and Hillegonda A. T. (Jonker) Keers as Righteous Among the Nations. |
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Gezin 1
| Huwelijkspartner: | Willemina Hendrika Schuurman | geb. 16 Jan 1911 overl. 1 Juni 1992 |
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