Gerrit Poppegaai was a son of Joseph Poppegaai and Aaltje Schellevis. He was born on 9 April 1884 in Amsterdam and earned his living as cigar maker. After he was married in Amsterdam to Magdalena van Geldere on 18 December 1913, he became a cigar manufactuer en shop keeper in tobacco articles and had his shop in the Albert Cuypstraat 149.
His wife, Magdalena van Geodere was born in Doesburg on 13 May 1890 as a daughter of Saul van Geldere and Sientje Fransman. The couple had two daughters, namely Alida in 1915 and Gesina in 1918. Only Gesina has survived the Shoah.
After being arrested (for reasons unknown), Gerrit Poppegaai was sent to the Mauthausen concentration camp, where he arrived on 4 July 1942. There he was given prisoner number 10928 and stayed in Block 5.
The conditions in Mauthausen were particularly bad, because the aim of the camp was to kill the prisoners by making them work hard: 'Tötung durch Arbeit'.(killing by labor). Abuse, disease and hunger determined the prisoners' daily routine. Five days after arriving at the camp, on 9 July 1942, Gerrit Poppegaai died by electrocution at the high-voltage fence (the death notice from Mauthausen gives as cause of death 'Freitod durch Elektro-Zaun')
His wife Magdalena van Geldere was carried off to Westerbork on 20 April 1943 where she had to stay in barrack 57. On 27 April she was put on transport to Sobibor where upon arrival there, she was immediately murdered in the gas chambers.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, archive cards of Gerrit Poppegaai and Magdalena van Geldere; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Gerrit Poppegaai and Magdalena Poppegaai-van Geldere; website ITS Arolson, Todsfallaufnahme (death certificate) of Gerrit Poppegaain, made out 30 July 1942 in Mauthausen and his Todesmeldung (Reporting of death)of 9 July 1942 from Mauthausen.