Willigen van Martien & Johanna (Breetveld)

Willigen van, Martien & Johanna (Breedvelt) When the war broke out, Philip de Schaap and his wife were living in Amsterdam. Two days before Germany invaded Holland they met Martien and Johanna van Willigen at a cinema where Martien was the manager. Philip was also in the film business and so they quickly struck up a conversation and became friends. Martien expressed his indignation at all that had transpired in Germany regarding the Jews. This repugnance for the Nazis and their policies continued when the Germans invaded Holland and implemented their policies there as well. In 1942, when the situation for the Jews in Holland became dire and deportations began, Martien and Johanna perceived that their friends’ lives were at stake. In August 1942, Philip had an accident and landed in the hospital. Martien and Johanna visited him several times while he was recovering. When he left the hospital, they offered the de Schaaps shelter in their home, purely on their own initiative. They were motivated out of friendship and idealistic principles. Martien and Johanna created a hiding place for the fugitive couple behind a wall in their 17th century home. Often the situation became extremely tense but nevertheless the two couples remained close friends, expecting that if they were caught they would all be sharing the same fate at the hands of the Germans. Philip and his wife remained at the van Willigen home from September 1942 to the liberation on May 5, 1945. However, they were not the only ones hidden by Martien and Johanna. During this time, six other Jews found refuge in their home: Claus Schoenbeck, the Vissers and their eight-year-old daughter, Miss S. Davids, and Mrs. D. Nopol. On June 4th, 1973, Yad Vashem recognized Martien van Willigen and his wife, Johanna van Willigen-Breedvelt, as Righteous Among the Nations.