Chevrieux Gilbert & Germaine (Dupuy)

Dupuy, Arthur Dupuy, Henriette Chevrieux, Gilbert Chevrieux, Germaine Arthur and Henriette Dupuy, both in their 60s, lived with their daughter and son-in-law, Gilbert and Germaine Chevrieux, in Requeil (Sarthe) and were working as farmers when they agreed to take in Jewish children in danger. This is how Jean Kac was welcomed one day at Bel Air, the Dupuy’s farm. He became Jean Moreau without the need for false papers, as they were not required for a child born in 1934. He came with a little girl named Simone Khalifa. Jean was the son of a foreign Jew who had enlisted and had been taken prisoner. His mother’s sole income was the allowance paid to wives of prisoners of war. A neighbor had hid them during various raids. Jean was finally entrusted to Father Théomir Devaux*, the spiritual leader of the Notre-Dame de Sion religious order. He had created a rescue network in order to find foster homes and places of refuge for Jewish children. Jean spent two or three weeks at the Dupuys’ until their daughter Germaine, who had just given birth, could take him under her wing as planned. He stayed at “Mélier,” the Chevrieux farm, until the Liberation, while Simone remained with the Dupuys. Jean led a normal life and attended the village school. His presence at “Mélier” had been explained to the neighbors as necessary in order to keep a child from Paris away from hardships and shelling. He was considered one of the family and enjoyed its affectionate attention. He was given his own bedroom and did not suffer from anything except the intense cold during this period. The small sums paid to the family barely compensated for the expense of keeping him, not to mention the extra risks they were taking. Indeed, a German unit was stationed less than 500 meters away at the Château de la Roche-Mailly. When the war was over, Jean was reunited with his parents and got his real name back. He never forgot his foster family and maintained close relations with them. On November 4,2004, Yad Vashem recognized Arthur and Henriette Dupuy, along with Gilbert and Germaine Chevrieux, as Righteous Among the Nations.