Johan Franciscus Bierau
| Geslacht: | Man | |
| Vader: | Antonius Marinus Bierau | |
| Moeder: | Antonia Wilhelmina van der Heul | |
| Geboren: | 3 Sept 1917 | Amsterdam |
| Beroep: | herenkapper | |
| Aantekeningen: | Last Name: Biereau First Name: Johannes Rescuer's fate: survived Nationality: THE NETHERLANDS Gender: Male Profession: BARBERY OWNER Place during the war: Amsterdam, Noordholland, The Netherlands Rescue Place: Amsterdam, Noordholland, The Netherlands Rescue mode: Hiding File number: File from the Collection of the Righteous Among the Nations Department (M.31.2/9008) At the time the war broke out in May 1940, Johannes Biereau owned a barbershop in Amsterdam, in a neighborhood with many Jewish residents. One of his frequent clients was Maurits Loonstein, who lived close by. In the summer of 1943, when Maurits was called up for work in the East he saw no other way out but to go into hiding place and turned to Johannes Biereau for help. Johannes and his wife at the time, Anna (née Voorn), not being able to bear the measures against the Jews, agreed to take in both Maurits and his wife Jeannette (née Bartels), fully realizing the personal risk they were taking. The Biereaus, who had no children at the time, were living in two rooms behind the barbershop. The Loonsteins were given one of them. Since the Loonsteins were known in the area, it was imperative to keep their presence at the Biereaus a secret. They thus needed to stay inside at all times for the two years. The presence of the Loonstein couple was an even more risky undertaking during the day when clients came to the barbershop. At night Anna kept all the curtains closed in order to keep the Loonsteins away from the public eye. Only a brother of Anna, a student at the time, knew about their existence and would discuss his studies with Maurits. Anna did the shopping for the extended family in various stores so no suspicion would be aroused by the extra quantities of food purchased. Luckily, in 1944, during extensive house searches in the area, somehow the Biereaus home was skipped. Relations between the two couples were good at all times in spite of the crowded quarters. The Loonsteins were allowed to stay until the liberation of the area in May 1945 even after the first Biereau child was born in January 1945. After the war, the Loonsteins kept in touch with the Anna and Johannes. On July 30, 2000, Yad Vashem recognized Johannes Biereau and Anna Voorn (formerly Biereau), as Righteous Among the Nations. |
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Gezin 1
| Huwelijkspartner: | Anna Voorn | geb. 17 Apr 1916 |
| Huwelijk: | 3 Juni 1942 | Amsterdam |
| Scheiding: | 26 Juni 1950 |