23-03-2011
Een Nederlandse dame (70) die als meisje tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog ondergedoken zat bij een Amsterdams gezin, heeft haar 'broers' uit die periode weer teruggevonden dankzij een oproep in ons blad 'Aanspraak'.
De Afdeling Verzetsdeelnemers en Oorlogsgetroffenen (voorheen PUR) in de SVB-Vestiging Leiden maakt dit blad vier keer per jaar voor haar 33.000 klanten. Onderdeel van het blad is de rubriek 'Zoek' waarin klanten een oproep kunnen doen naar personen of families. Door zo'n oproep te plaatsen in het septembernummer 2010 vond deze dame de twee heren die in die periode voor haar als broers waren. Een mooi resultaat.
Zie hier voor de site waar dit bericht is geplaatst incl een foto van de dame toen en nu incl haar "broers": Hidden baby meets her 'brothers'
KAY BLUNDELL
Last updated 05:00 23/03/2011
THE DOMINION POSTSEARCH OVER: Richard, left, and Marcel Hakkens of the Kapiti Coast greet Elli Mantegari, the girl in the Amsterdam attic, almost 70 years later.Relevant offersNearly 70 years ago a little Jewish girl was saved from the Nazis by a Dutch family who hid her in their attic for 2 1/2 years.
At the end of the war, Elli Szanowski escaped with family members to Argentina and the Hakkens family who hid her never saw her again – until a tearful reunion at Wellington Airport yesterday.
"My brothers, my brothers," Elli, now 70, cried as she spread her arms wide and greeted Marcel and Richard Hakkens, the two sons of Johanna and Frits Hakkens in whose house she was hidden in Amsterdam.
The risks of discovery were huge for the family as well as for Elli, who was about 18 months old when she was taken into hiding after her father was killed by the Nazis and her mother fled to Switzerland.
At one point, when a young Richard Hakkens contracted diphtheria, his mother had to tie Elli to her bed in the attic while she visited Richard in hospital.
During the war, Frits Hakkens worked in the resistance while his wife sewed diamonds into Jewish children's pockets to help them flee the country through an underground network.
Near the end of the war, Elli's uncle picked her up. She was reunited with her mother and sister and went to live in Argentina.
Johanna and Frits Hakkens, who emigrated to New Zealand in the 1960s, died without knowing what had happened to her, and had only an old photograph of the little girl.
But their daughter-in-law, Marcel's wife, Gloria Hakkens, of Waikanae, was determined to find her. "She [Johanna] showed me her photo many times. The hope of finding her seemed impossible."
Then three years ago, she met Frits' brother, Jos, in Amsterdam. She also visited the Anne Frank House in the city, and seeing the hiding rooms strengthened her resolve to find Elli.
She tried many contacts, including Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Israel, other holocaust museums and education centres but to no avail.
In March 2010, Marcel and grandson Caleb went to see a movie about a rescue operation allowing 669 Jewish children to escape from occupied Europe to England. Caleb also became inspired by his grandmother's quest and encouraged her to look "just one more time".
She contacted Yad Vashem again and this time got a response suggesting she publish an advert in Dutch magazine Aanspraak, read by thousands of World War II survivors.
Elli's sister, Leny Radziner, living in Los Angeles, saw the ad mentioning Johanna and Frits Hakkens and realised immediately they were looking for her sister. She contacted Elli, who emailed the Hakkens.
Ad Feedback They were overwhelmed to receive the email stating: "I am almost sure I am the one you are looking for."
They rang then Skyped her, held up the photo of the little girl, and all three burst into tears.
"She cried, `It's me, it's me.' You can imagine our excitement," Mrs Hakkens said.
"It was just amazing, gave some closure," her husband said. "It is tragically sad my parents are not here to have completion too."
Walking into the arrival lounge at Wellington Airport yesterday with her sister at her side, Elli, whose married surname is Mantegari, described Marcel and Richard as the brothers she never knew.
"I am still up in the clouds. I knew about their mother and father, but did not know they had children and grandchildren."
She had no recollection of her stay with the Hakkens but said her mother always said they did a wonderful job of looking after her.
Mrs Radziner, 72, who was also at yesterday's reunion, described the meeting, after 68 years, as a miracle.
- © Fairfax NZ News