History of Sorts

Bert Jan Flim, a noted Dutch historian who has researched the rescue of Jewish children during the Holocaust in the Netherlands. His father and paternal grandparents were recipients of the Righteous Among the Nations award for their part in rescuing Jews during the Holocaust.

Herman Flim, a baker from Nijverdal. During World War II, Herman Flim was part of the NV. The NV was a resistance organization that, alongside the Utrecht Children’s Committee, the Amsterdam Student Group, and the Trouw Group, helped Jewish children reach safety. These children mainly came from the nursery opposite the Hollandsche Schouwburg in Amsterdam. Herman Flim was responsible for more than seventy Jewish children, the most well-known of whom was Ed van Thijn, the future mayor of Amsterdam. Herman Flim and the other members of the NV were honored by Yad Vashem.

Throughout 1943, the number of Dutch men conscripted for forced labor in Germany increased significantly. As these numbers rose, so too did resistance to the occupation. To protect individuals from deportation, records in population registration bureaus were falsified. For example, documents were altered to show that Herman Flim had died just four days after his birth in Nijverdal, Overijssel. In reality, Herman and his parents— Berend Jan, born in Nijverdal, and Gerarda, born in Leeuwarden—ran a bakery in Nijverdal and actively worked against the German occupiers throughout the war.

Among their many acts of defiance, Herman and a friend hid an Allied pilot in a summerhouse near their village, a location maintained by Berend Jan. In early November 1943, the NV resistance group operating in the South Limburg mining district received a warning: a large-scale manhunt was imminent for more than 200 Jewish children and a dozen adults hiding in the area. The group urgently sought a secure location where fugitives could be sent in times of extreme danger. Ultimately, they chose the summerhouse in Nijverdal. To finalize arrangements, NV operative Piet Vermeer* visited the Flim family. Herman not only agreed to help but also promised to seek additional hiding places among his bakery customers.

In January 1944, Jaap Musch moved into the summerhouse with five Jewish girls, aged 11 to 14.

Thanks to Herman’s efforts, even more Jewish children were soon brought to safety in the area. From that point forward, he provided food coupons, clothing, and shoes, and even covered maintenance costs for the young refugees. When new children arrived, they were first taken to the bakery, where Gerarda (Mien) Flim familiarized them with local customs and manners. After a few days, they were moved to their designated hiding places.

By April 1944, another NV network, based in Hengelo, Overijssel, faced disruption when a key contact, Jan Schipper, was arrested. In response, Herman assumed Jan’s responsibilities, overseeing the care of hidden Jewish children in the region. With the aid of false identity papers provided by the NV, he was able to move freely without arousing suspicion.

In early September 1944, the Germans arrested Jaap Musch. Before his capture, he instructed the four girls under his care to flee into the woods and hide. Meanwhile, Dutch policemen collaborating with the Nazis set a trap to capture Resistance members attempting to rescue people. One of the Jewish girls, 11-year-old Lea Winnik, was caught in the ambush. Herman swiftly gathered the other three girls and brought them to safety. Determined to act, he mobilized enough people to plan an attack and liberate the summerhouse. Along the way, he encountered Rosie Colthof, who informed him that Lea had so convincingly argued to the Germans that she was of Dutch East Indian descent that the local police had released all the prisoners.

After the military defeat at Arnhem, the NV in Limburg could no longer support the Jewish children hidden in Overijssel.

Recognizing the urgency of the situation, Herman sought out members of the LO, another Dutch resistance group, and urged them to take responsibility for the children’s care. His own family provided permanent shelter to one of them—12-year-old Greetje Kloots.

Throughout the war, Berend Jan and Mien tirelessly aided fugitives. Despite their dedication, they experienced personal tragedy when their 17-year-old son was killed in a British air raid in October 1944. Yet, even in their grief, they continued their resistance efforts, including sheltering Hans Kinsbergen, a German defector who had joined the NV.

On March 22, 1945, a heavy bombardment of Nijverdal destroyed the Flims’ bakery and home. Fortunately, the family and those in their care managed to escape to a nearby trench, where they found shelter. Though exhausted and left with nothing, they were finally liberated from German occupation on April 8, 1945.

Decades later, on September 22, 1981, Yad Vashem honored Berend Jan Flim, his wife Gerarda Wilhelmina Flim-van Leusen, and their son Herman Flim with the title of Righteous Among the Nations in recognition of their extraordinary bravery and selflessness.

Berend Jan died on December 28, 1970, aged 76.Gerarda died on September 3, 1972, aged 81.Herman died April 30, 2009

sources

https://collections.yadvashem.org/en/righteous/4044563

https://www.bnaibrith.org/dutch-historian-and-author-bert-jan-flim-to-visit-israel-html/

https://www.oorlogsbronnen.nl/tijdlijn/0ed7d902-c375-4aa1-906e-4ba329c8bbbb

https://collections.yadvashem.org/en/search-results/Herman%20Flim?page=1#relevant

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