Betty Goudsmit-Oudkerk - Rescuer of Jewish Children

Born: April 2, 1924, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Died: June 14, 2020, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Betty Goudsmit-Oudkerk was a Dutch-Jewish resistance fighter whose bravery as a teenager saved 600 Jewish children from the Holocaust by secretly moving them from a nursery in Amsterdam to safety.

Betty Goudsmit-Oudkerk was only 17 years old when she became part of one of the most remarkable rescue efforts of World War II. Born in Amsterdam to Henriette Hamburger-Monnickendam and Leendert Oudkerk, Betty grew up in a Jewish family. When the Nazis occupied the Netherlands in 1940, her life, and the lives of her family and community, changed forever. Betty would lose her mother, grandmother, and two brothers during the war, but her own bravery would help save hundreds of children from certain death.

During the Holocaust, Jewish families in Amsterdam were rounded up and sent to the Hollandsche Schouwburg, a theater that had been turned into a detention center. Parents were kept there while awaiting deportation to concentration camps. The Germans did not want the noise of children disturbing the process, so the little ones were sent across the street to a nursery on Plantage Middenlaan. At first, this seemed like a small act of convenience for the Nazis, but it opened a door to resistance.

The nursery staff, which included Betty, quietly worked with others to smuggle children out. The director of the Hollandsche Schouwburg, Walter Süskind, and a nearby Protestant seminary leader, Johan van Hulst, joined the effort. Together, they created a network where children could be secretly moved from the nursery to safe houses. Some were carried out in bags, laundry baskets, or even walked casually down the street to meeting points where members of the resistance would take them to safety.

Betty’s role was both simple and dangerous. She cared for the children, kept them calm, and sometimes walked them herself to places where they could be hidden. She later explained, “I danced and sang with the children. And singing is a really good distraction from sadness, you know.” Her ability to comfort frightened children was just as important as the secret handoffs. Through these acts, Betty and her colleagues helped rescue around 600 children from the Holocaust.

Despite her enormous bravery, Betty stayed silent about her role for decades. Like many who lived through such traumatic times, she found it painful to talk about. For most of her life, she kept her memories private, raising five children with her husband, Bram Goudsmit. It was only in her later years, at the urging of her children, that she allowed her story to be written down.

In 2016, her book Betty: A Jewish Childcare Worker in the Resistance was published. The first copy was given to Eberhard van der Laan, then the mayor of Amsterdam. That same year, Betty received the B’nai B’rith “Jews Rescued Jews” certificate, an international award honoring Jewish resistance heroes during the Holocaust. Slowly, she began to appear more publicly at commemorations, lectures, and memorial events. She laid wreaths on national remembrance days, spoke at openings of Jewish cultural sites, and attended the launch of the National Holocaust Museum.

Betty became a living symbol of courage and quiet resistance. The nursery where she once worked, and the nearby seminary where so many children were hidden, are now part of the Jewish Cultural Quarter in Amsterdam. Emile Schrijver, director of the Jewish Cultural Quarter, called her a “true hero.”

Even though she once refused to speak about her past, Betty’s later willingness to share ensured that the stories of those saved, and those lost, would not be forgotten. Her testimony, combined with her lifelong modesty, made her an inspiration for generations.

Betty Goudsmit-Oudkerk passed away on June 14, 2020, at the age of 96. She was the last surviving member of the nursery team that saved hundreds of Jewish children. Her life reminds us that even in the darkest times, a young person’s courage and compassion can change the course of history.

References:
Liphshiz, Cnaan. “Dutch-Jewish WWII Hero Betty Goudsmit-Oudkerk, Who Saved Hundreds of Children, Dies at 96.” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 16 June 2020, www.jta.org/quick-reads/dutch-jewish-wwii-hero-betty-goudsmit-oudkerk-who-saved-hundreds-of-children-dies-at-96.
““Verzetsstrijdster Betty Goudsmit-Oudkerk Overleden.” NOS.Nl - Nieuws, Sport En Evenementen, NOS Nieuws, 15 June 2020, nos.nl/artikel/2337387-verzetsstrijdster-betty-goudsmit-oudkerk-overleden.

Keywords:
Justice, Wartime, Courage, Humility, Responsibility, Selflessness, Make a Difference, Take Risks for Others