David Barend was the eldest son of Salomon Barend and Lena IJzerkoper. He married 4 Februray 1909 Esther Wijnschenk in Amsterdam, a daughter of Barend Wijnschenk and Branca Dingsdag. The couple had thee children, namely Salomon in 1909, Branca in 1911 and Lena in 1912. Parents and all children with their families have lost their lives in the Shoah.
David Barend worked as errand boy but also as brilliant mender. After his wedding, David and Ester moved in a house at ‘s-Gravezandestraat 34 1st floor, where also their children were born and from where they were taken for deportation.
From the archives of the Jewish Council, it appeared that David Barend has been employed as forced labourer in the Jewish Labor Camp Gijsselte. All Jewish forced labourers, also David Barend, were sent to Westerbork on 3 October 1942. Then an extra card was made for David Barend with the heading “F. Wehrmacht” and with the following note: Transport from Labor camp Gijsselte to Westerbork on 3 October 1942. The here mentioned David Barend works, just as his wife on Wehrmacht orders (fur mittens and fur shoes) and exemption (Sperre) from deportation can be expected any day, reason why urgently postponement from deportation is requested.
To that end, on 11 October 1942 a copy of the call and a copy of the I.D. card with the woman’s “Sperre”, or the Sperre-call of 13 October 1942 were requesterd, all of which obviously were received on 28 October in Weserbork. However, it all didn’t help. David Barend was put on transport to Auschwitz on 30 October 1942 and on arrival there on 2 November 1942, he was immediately killed.
His wife Esther Barend-Wijnschenk was registered in Westerbork on 20 May 1943, at the time of the big raids in Amsterdam and ended up in barrack 55. She was deported 25 May 1943 from Westerbork to Sobibor and on arrival there on 28 May 1943 immediately killed.
Sources among others: City Archive of Amsterdam, family registration card and archive card of David Barend, archive card of Esther Wijnschenk; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of David Barend and Esther Barend-Wijnschenk.