Vijfwinkel Adriana

Vijfwinkel, Adriana Adriana (Adrie) Vijfwinkel headed an underground organization operating out of Voorburg, South Holland that saved the lives of many Jews. The group was active in forging passports, finding hiding places and escorting Jews to them, providing them with food coupons, money, and, whenever possible, keeping them in touch with their loved ones. Jacqueline Spetter (later Philips), who was 18 years old at the time, was one of the Jews under Adrie’s care. She and her family went into hiding on August 9, 1942, with Mr. and Mrs. Smith and their school-age children in Voorburg, and this was how they met Adrie. She later found them a safer place to hide and provided them with false identity cards, pocket money, and food coupons. A little while later, the entire Smith family was betrayed and perished in concentration camps. Over the course of the war, Jacqueline had to move a total of 16 times, and in most cases it was Adrie who found her a new place to stay. When there was nowhere else to go, Adrie took Jacqueline into her own home, where she stayed for six months. At first, it was considered safer if Adrie’s mother did not know her guest’s true identity, but after some time she was let in on the secret. It was while she was staying with Adrie that Jacqueline came to understand how the entire family was involved in underground activities, including Adrie’s father, her two brothers, and her sister. One of the brothers was betrayed and spent two years in concentration camps, never fully recovering from the emotional wounds he incurred there. On December 3, 1984, Yad Vashem recognized Adriana Vijfwinkel as Righteous Among the Nations.