Geesbert van Barneveld receives posthumous Yad Vashem award
It is a Jewish saying: a man is not forgotten until his name is forgotten. The name of Geesbert van Barneveld, working as township deputy for the municipality of Wassenaar at the outbreak of World War II, is now never forgotten. The Yad Vashem award, Righteous Among the Nations, is presented to non-Jews for their assistance to Jews during World War II. This exceptional award was posthumously presented to Geesbert van Barneveld last Wednesday, June 19, during a very impressive gathering in Raadhuis De Paauw. A daughter of this heroic rescuer of many Jewish persecuted people, together with two grandchildren, received the medal and certificate. The name of resistance fighter Geesbert van Barneveld is inscribed in the Hall of Names at the Yad Vashem Institute in Jerusalem, Israel.
Geesbert van Barneveld
Geesbert van Barneveld was employed as Municipal Collector of the Municipality of Wassenaar. He held office in the room where the Municipal Archives is now located. Geesbert was an active resistance fighter who, among other things, forged identity cards and food stamps, financially supported people in hiding, and took Jewish fellow villagers to safe hiding addresses elsewhere in the country every Sunday. "Not many people went against the grain. Geesbert did," said David Simon, president of the Friends of Yad Vashem Netherlands Foundation and also master of ceremonies for the event.
Presentation
"Geesbert's story touched my heart" said the Ambassador of Israel who officially presented the Yad Vashem medal and certificate to Mrs. Loes van Barneveld and two grandchildren. Loes is one of the three children of the brave Geesbert who said he "loved his country as much as his family. In addition to Dirk and Loes, Guus was a child of Geesbert.
Peter Knijnenburg
"Until 2015, I had no knowledge of the existence of Geesbert van Barneveld," Peter said. "Until I met his son Guus. From him I received the book 'Always War,' which tells the story of his father, Geesbert. It turned out that this brave civil servant was 'dishonorably discharged' by the German authorities during the war. He was rehabilitated after the war and it was promised that a street name would be named after him, but that did not happen at the time. A few years ago, however, the park across from our municipal office was renamed the Geesbert van Barneveld Park. Unfortunately, Guus could no longer be there." Peter then got in touch with Loes and took the initiative to apply for the Yad Vashem award.
Betrayal
"I realize all too well that during the war a 'wrong' mayor worked in my current office. That hurts me a lot," Mayor De Lange told me in an equally impressive speech. "It is therefore thought that this NSB mayor betrayed Geesbert. He was on his way to take Elly van Esso, a Jewish fellow villager, to a hiding place. They were both arrested on the train on the way to Haarlem."
So that we never forget
During the well-organized gathering, which included a musical interlude in which the music of the persecuted and Jewish composer Dick Kattenburg, murdered in World War II, was played by two violinists, the name of Geesbert van Barneveld was mentioned several times. This brave man with guts and courage, paid the highest price for his acts of resistance, namely his life. Let us continue to tell and speak the stories and his name. So that we never forget!