Geerhard Hannink
| Geslacht: | Man | |
| Vader: | Jan Hannink | |
| Moeder: | Johanna Wevers | |
| Geboren: | 27 Jan 1893 | Lonneker |
| Overleden: | 30 Juli 1968 | |
| Beroep: | timmerman | |
| Aantekeningen: | Last Name: Hannink First Name: Geerhard Date of Birth: 27/01/1893 Date of death: 30/07/1968 Rescuer's fate: survived Nationality: THE NETHERLANDS Gender: Male Profession: PEASANT Place during the war: Usselo, Overijssel, The Netherlands Rescue Place: Usselo, Overijssel, The Netherlands Rescue mode: Hiding ; Arranging shelter ; Providing forged documents File number: File from the Collection of the Righteous Among the Nations Department (M.31.2/9086) Geerhard and Johanna Hannink lived with their three adult children in the village of Usselo (prov. Overijssel). Geerhard was a building contractor. The others worked on the farm. From the start of the war, they were actively opposed to the Nazis. When one day, in the summer of 1942, they were approached by Mr. Philips, a Jewish business acquaintance, asking for urgent help in hiding him and his wife, they agreed to do so. However, Mrs. Philips, who maintained a kosher household, declined the offer since she feared that she would not be able to continue eating kosher. Instead, Philips asked the Hanninks if they could take his nieces from nearby Winterswijk into hiding, 20-year-old Sini de Leeuw (later, Hond) and her 10-year-old sister Johanna (later, Reiss). The Hanninks readily agreed. While the de Leeuw sisters were in hiding, a number of other Jews from the area found temporary safe haven in the Hannink home until safer hiding addresses could be located. Because the high turnover of Jews in hiding increased the risk of discovery, the Hanninks built an underground shelter where the Jews stayed most of the time. Two months after the arrival of the de Leeuw sisters, the Hanninks found them a more permanent hiding address with a childless couple, Johan and Gerritdina Oosterveld, farmers in Usselo. Johans mother, Hermina, also lived with them. Living conditions were very basic, without running water and no indoor toilet. They were given an upstairs room where they needed to stay most of the time, out of sight. Friendly relations developed between the sisters and their rescuers, with Sini de Leeuw helping out as much as she could. In October 1944, the Oostervelds were ordered to billet some German soldiers for a number of months. During that period, the de Leeuw sisters had to stay quiet at all times in their upstairs room. The Germans took three rooms on the ground floor, which Johan closed off from the rest of the house. Some time later, Johan was ordered to report for forced labor in Germany. He refused to go, and in order not to endanger the de Leeuw girls, it was decided that they had better return to the Hanninks, where they stayed again in the underground shelter. Since Sini could not take being closed in all day, the Oostervelds agreed to take her back after the German soldiers had left. Geerhard Hannink succeeded in obtaining false papers for Sini, which enabled her to work outside at another farm in the area. Sini and Johanna stayed with their host families in the village of Usselo until the liberation of the area in April 1945. On November 21, 2004, Yad Vashem recognized Geerhard Hannink, Johanna Berendina Hannink-Eeltink, Johan Oosterveld, Gerritdina Oosterveld-Nijhuis and Hermina Oosterveld-Nieuwenhuism as Righteous Among the Nations. |
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Gezin 1
| Huwelijkspartner: | Johanna Berendina Eeltink | geb. 21 MRT 1896 overl. 23 Jan 1960 |
| Huwelijk: | 21 MEI 1919 | Lonneker |