Batelaan Hendrik & Anna (Berg van den)

Batelaan, Hendrik & Anna Maria Giliea (van den Berg) Hendrik Batelaan of Leidschendam, South Holland, was a director of the municipal gas and electricity works in his hometown and in this capacity came into contact with the local mayor and members of the municipal council, who were Dutch Nazis. During the war Hendrik and his wife Anna, both in their thirties, and with seven children under the age of 14, strongly urged Max and Lea Pagrach-Karp of Amsterdam to hide in their home. The Pagrachs, a young couple, were initially hesitant to go into hiding. However, in September 1942, when the mass deportations were in full swing, they decided to take the big step. Upon their arrival they found themselves welcomed lovingly into the relatively peaceful haven of the Batelaans’ home and soon learned that the generosity of Hendrik and Anna was boundless. On June 8, 1943, Lea gave birth to a girl. A local doctor, who was aware that the Pagrachs were a fugitive couple, assisted with the birth. During Lea’s pregnancy, in January 1943, her mother, Jenny Karp-Brenner, had joined them. Food, although scarce, was shared equally by the Batelaans with their guests and the Pagrachs did not contribute towards their upkeep. In March 1944 Lea’s brother, Jozua Karp, who had been hiding elsewhere, also went into hiding in the Batelaans’ home and stayed with them until the end of the war. Throughout the entire war the Batelaans were especially careful about ensuring that their children and the live-in maid kept the family secret and the atmosphere at home was constantly warm and friendly. On April 9, 1945, a second child was born to the Pagrachs. When the country was liberated, only one month later, six members of a single family could declare that they had survived the war thanks to Hendrik and Anna Batelaan. On December 22, 1977, Yad Vashem recognized Hendrik Batelaan and his wife, Anna Maria Giliea Batelaan-van den Berg, as Righteous Among the Nations.