Item description
Description
- Title:
- Eyewitness account by Andree Geulen entitled 'The Rescue of Jewish Children in Belgium'
- Summary:
-
The author worked at the Belgian Ministry of Labour as a welfare officer. At the beginning of the year 1943, she joined theC.D.J. (Comité de défense des Juifs), in order to hide and help Jewish children. She describes the various departments and tasks of this organization (p.1) and how the work was done in the children’s group, to which she belonged; some examples of the complicated rescue work (p.2, 5-7). Reports on the extreme difficulties which had to be overcome, in order to return a small child to his mother, after the baby’s name had to be changed twice, his mother had been known to be dead for years and the foster parents wanted to keep the child (p.3-5).
Some people at Brussels were still afraid of the “Fünfte Kolonne“ when the occupation was over (p.4). Help from Catholic nuns, Avenue Clémenceau; deportation and imprisonment for other non-Jews helping Jews; Mr and Mrs Ovart, and their daughter who had hidden Jewish children and adults, pensionnat Gaty de Gamont (p.6). The author arrested twice could get away (p.6). Help from a police-officer; the Chief of the food office at Brussels generously helped out with ration cards (p.6-7).
Repeatedly they succeeded to rescue the children under the nose of the Gestapo during the raids, whilst the parents were arrested (p.7).
- Witness:
- Geulen, Andree
- Number of pages:
- 8 pieces
- Date(s):
- 1957
- Catalogue ID:
- 105666
- Reference number:
- 1656/3/7/1046
- Location:
- Belgium Antwerp Brussels Kassel Wezembeek-Oppem
- Date Range:
- 1939-1945
- Type of Material:
- Eyewitness account