Five Brothers and a War

Leen and Kees— Onderduikers

After he slept on the idea of sheltering Leen and Kees, JanKees realized the potential of having free help, something he could dearly use, so he agreed to let the two stay. They ironed out some of the details where the two would help both with the cows and with the older relatives in exchange for room and board. Leen and Kees quickly learned to adapt to a new and satisfying lifestyle and got along well with their host and his family. They could consume milk as they pleased, providing that JanKees could still meet the production quota dictated by the Nazis. If JanKees was short in his deliveries, he would be punished. The assumption was that with the Allies not far away, and with the Germans on the defensive, the war would be over fairly soon, so the risk of having the brothers seemed to be manageable. However, on the other side of the equation, as they ate breakfast the very first morning, they learned of raids by the Germans in which they arrested everyone not belonging in the area Leen, Kees and the two Piets had visited just the day earlier. Hundreds of people had been picked up and sent into servitude. Again, miraculously, they had avoided a disastrous outcome.

van Pelt

The “ Boerderij ” farmhouse/barn combination belonging to JanKees Aantjes, as it appears today, which is very much the same as it appeared in 1945. .

Five Brothers and a War

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