Petronella van der Groef
| Geslacht: | Vrouw | |
| Vader: | Abraham van der Groef | |
| Moeder: | Cornelia van Groenigen | |
| Geboren: | 6 Juni 1926 | Haarlemmermeer |
| Aantekeningen: | Last Name: Groef van der First Name: Petronella Jacoba Date of Birth: 06/06/1926 Rescuer's fate: survived Nationality: THE NETHERLANDS Gender: Female Place during the war: Nieuw Vennep, Noordholland, The Netherlands Rescue Place: Nieuw Vennep, Noordholland, The Netherlands Rescue mode: Hiding File number: File from the Collection of the Righteous Among the Nations Department (M.31.2/1031) In October 1942, the van der Groef family of Nieuw Vennep, North Holland, took five-year-old Reina Klein into their home. Reina was brought to them by Geertje Kielema*, the former maid of the Klein family in Groningen. A few weeks earlier, when the Kleins had gone into hiding, Geertje had taken Reina and her three-year-old sister, Esther, to the room that she was renting. However, as they could not stay there for an extended length of time, Geertje had arranged other hiding places for them. She had reached the van der Groefs through connections in the underground. Abraham and Cornelia van der Groef and their 16-year-old daughter, Petronella, understood the risks they were taking by sheltering young Reina. Nevertheless, they believed that it was their duty to help her. In anticipation of house searches, they prepared a special hideaway in a cabinet in the house. Their home was searched several times but Reina was never found. Whenever the van der Groefs were forewarned about house searches, they moved Reina elsewhere temporarily. Reina stayed with the van der Groefs until the end of the war and was shown much love during her time in hiding. While there, Geertje visited the van der Groefs regularly to bring news about Reina's parents and sister. After the war, Reina returned to her parents and both families stayed in touch with each other. On December 25, 1980, Yad Vashem recognized Abraham van der Groef, his wife, Cornelia van der Groef-van Groenigen, and their daughter, Petronella Jacoba van der Groef, as Righteous Among the Nations. |
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