Schouwstra Pieter & Engelina

Schouwstra, Pieter & Engelina Cornelia (Schilp) In 1942, 25-year-old Tirtsa Heertjes (later Redlich) of Den Bosch, North Brabant, was dismissed from her job as a medical analyst because she was Jewish. She then took the advice of her father, the chief rabbi of Den Bosch and at the time in charge of the Jewish cemetery in Vught, and moved to Amsterdam. When the razzias there intensified, she decided to go into hiding and found a place in Zeist, Utrecht. However, it soon emerged that she could not trust her hosts and so, through the help of a friend, she was sent in December 1943 to Pieter and Engelina Schouwstra in Eindhoven. Pieter, an engineer at the local Philips Company, met Tirtsa at the railroad station and warmly welcomed her into his home. Pieter and Engelina had two children, ten-year-old Kees and four-year-old Ineke. Engelina’s mother lived in the house too. It was especially helpful for the Schouwstras to have Tirtsa around because Engelina was often sick and Tirtsa could look after the children and help with the household chores. Pieter and Engelina refused to receive financial compensation for sheltering Tirtsa. Moreover, they even paid her 25 guilders a week. Tirtsa stayed with them until the end of the war. The Schouwstras were vehemently opposed to the Nazi regime and actively involved in various illegal activities, such as forging identity cards and ration coupons. Their home was often used as a temporary hideout for Jews such as Mozes Cohen, his wife, and their sons Ernest and Daniel, waiting to be sent to permanent hideaways. Pieter was a key figure in the local underground. After the liberation, Tirtsa remained with the Schouwstras and helped them out for several months. She stayed in touch with them even after she left. On May 5, 1996, Yad Vashem recognized Pieter Schouwstra and his wife, Engelina Cornelia Schouwstra-Schilp, as Righteous Among the Nations.