Catharina Cornelia Alida van Steenes
| Geslacht: | Vrouw | |
| Vader: | Jan Willem Dirk van Steenes | |
| Moeder: | Wilhelmina Catharina Verheul | |
| Geboren: | 28 Jan 1911 | Den Haag |
| Religie: | Rooms Katholiek | |
| Aantekeningen: | Last Name: Steenes van First Name: Catharina Cornelia Alida Alias: TOOS Date of Birth: 28/01/1911 Date of death: 23/12/1995 Rescuer's fate: survived Nationality: THE NETHERLANDS Religion: ROMAN CATHOLIC Gender: Female Profession: NURSE Place during the war: Amsterdam, Noordholland, The Netherlands Rescue Place: Amsterdam, Noordholland, The Netherlands Rescue mode: Arranging shelter File number: File from the Collection of the Righteous Among the Nations Department (M.31.2/8578) In 1936, the Gotschall family immigrated to the Netherlands from Germany. In the fall of 1942, Erna Gotschall and her son Hans were arrested and placed in a deportation center. Erna realized the severity of the situation and the two managed to escape. Erna then started working in a Dutch hospital, where she met Catharina (Toos) van Steenes*, a nurse who was active in the underground. Erna turned to Toos for help and Toos agreed to find a family to look after Hans in The Hague, South Holland. Toos did not tell Erna that the family was in fact her own namely, Jacobus and Wilhelmina Hoogman. Toos was Wilhelmina's daughter from a previous marriage. In the spring of 1943, Jacobus and Wilhelmina, "Pa" and "Moe" as Hans affectionately came to call them, picked up Hans from Amsterdam. Upon arriving at their home, he was introduced to a large family consisting of four children ranging in age from eight to 16 years old. The children welcomed Hans into their home. He became especially friendly with Ton, who was his elder by three years. Many times neighbors asked Hans if he was Jewish, trying to catch him out, but Hans was not intimidated and replied that he did not even know what a Jew was. Once, a neighbor, a Nazi sympathizer, betrayed the Hoogmans for keeping illegal radios in their home. Two German soldiers paid them a visit but Jacobus did not yield though he had five radio sets hidden away, and the soldiers left. Throughout Hans's time in hiding, Jacobus and Wilhelmina were like real parents to him. When the war ended, they warmly received his mother into their home and she left with Hans, immigrating to the United States in 1947. Hans and the Hoogmans maintained warm relations thereafter. On July 20, 1999, Yad Vashem recognized Jacobus Hoogman, and his wife, Wilhelmina Catharina Hoogman-Verheul, and Catharina van Steenes as Righteous Among the Nations. |
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