Gerritje Kers

Geslacht:	Vrouw
Vader:	Gerrit Jan Kers
Moeder:	Geesje van de Mars
Geboren:	20 Juli 1910	Epe
Overleden:	25 Jan 1964
Aantekeningen:	Last Name: Geradts First Name: Gerritje Maiden Name: Kers Date of Birth: 20/06/1910 Date of death: 25/01/1964 Rescuer's fate: survived Nationality: THE NETHERLANDS Gender: Female Place during the war: Epe, Gelderland, The Netherlands Rescue Place: Epe, Gelderland, The Netherlands Rescue mode: Hiding File number: File from the Collection of the Righteous Among the Nations Department (M.31.2/8051) Bernardus Geradts, a printer from Epe, Gelderland, commenced his Resistance activities in May 1940. He was initially involved in picking up weapons and ammunition from the Grebbeberg, storing them in his house, and later taking them to Apeldoorn, Heerde, and other places. On August 1942, Bernardus resigned from the company where he was working because the management had begun to express sympathy for the Germans. That same month, he and his wife, Gerritje, welcomed the Aluin and Fontein couples into their home. Each couple was given a room on the first floor of the house. Bernardus and Gerritje’s children, a teenager and a younger brother and sister, slept in the third bedroom. All three siblings were fully aware of the presence of the fugitives in their home and were prohibited from going upstairs during the day and from inviting friends over to visit. Three weeks after Bernardus resigned, he was ordered to work in Germany. In Dessau, Germany, Bernardus committed acts of sabotage in the factory where he was sent to work. In 1943, he was called back to Holland and he was sent home on January 1944. On arriving, Bernardus immediately joined the Resistance group led by Captain van Dedem of Heerde, who transported weapons hidden in a hearse. On December 1944, the group was betrayed and its members were arrested in their homes, as were the Aluin and Fontein men in the Geradtses’ home. The 16 Resistance activists were taken to Neuengamme, where all but two were murdered. In May 1945, Bernardus returned home a broken and very sick man. Meanwhile, Bernardus and Gerritje’s eldest son, Gerrit Jan, then 14 years old, was working for a bakery in the nearby village of Heerde as a substitute for the regular deliveryman, who had been sent to Germany. Gerrit Jan visited his mother every day during his rounds and thus could provide her with extra bread for his siblings and the two ladies who were still hiding there. After awhile Gerritje took her wards to another hiding place. On June 14, 1998, Yad Vashem recognized Bernardus Arnoldus Geradts and his wife, Gerritje Geradts-Kers, as Righteous Among the Nations.

Gezin 1

Huwelijkspartner:	Bernardus Arnoldus Geradts	geb. 27 OKT 1900 overl. 22 Feb 1973
Huwelijk:	XXXX	onbekend