Huisman Marten & Hendrika (Scheepmakers); Daughter: Koning Fokje (Huisman); Son-In-Law: Koning Reinder

Huisman, Marten & Hendrika Catherina (Scheepmaker) Huisman, Gerard Albertus & Klazina (Winters) Koning, Reinder & Fokje (Huisman) Seven-year-old Ruth Kats and her five-year-old brother, Bert, went into hiding with Marten and Riek Huisman in the spring of 1942. The two children had been brought there when their previous hiding place with the Havemans*, had become unsafe. The Huismans lived in Glanerburg, Overijssel, near Enschede, right by the German border. They shared their small apartment with their daughter Fokje, her husband Reinder Koning, and their two young children. The family was strict Reformed Christians and felt it was their duty to save those in danger. The little they had was shared amongst everyone, with no financial remuneration. Ruth and Bert Kats were treated like their own children. Since the house was next door to a café billeted by German SS officers, the Huismans had to remain on constant alert to make sure the children were not seen. Whenever rumors reached them about an upcoming razzia, Ruth and Bert were temporarily moved to stay with Gerard Huisman, Marten and Riek’s son, and his wife Klazina. Gerard was a greengrocer in Enschede, and prepared a special hiding place under the roof for Ruth and Bert to stay while the store was open. The children stayed with the Huisman/Koning family for three years until the liberation. On April 8, 1986, Yad Vashem recognized Marten Huisman and his wife, Riek Huisman-Scheepmaker, Gerard Albertus Huisman and his wife, Klazina Huisman-Winters, and Reinder Koning and his wife, Fokje Koning-Huisman as Righteous Among the Nations.