Information: Wikipedia

A Stolperstein literally "stumbling stone", metaphorically a "stumbling block" is a sett-size, 10 by 10 centimetres (3.9 in × 3.9 in) concrete cube bearing a brass plate inscribed with the name and life dates of victims of Nazi extermination or persecution.

The Stolpersteine project, initiated by the German artist Gunter Demnig in 1992, aims to commemorate individuals at exactly the last place of residency—or, sometimes, work—which was freely chosen by the person before he or she fell victim to Nazi terror, euthanasia, eugenics, was deported to a concentration or extermination camp, or escaped persecution by emigration or suicide. As of 29 March 2018, over 67,000 Stolpersteine have been laid in 22 countries, making the Stolpersteine project the world's largest decentralized memorial.

The majority of Stolpersteine commemorate Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Others have been placed for Sinti and Romani people (then also called "gypsies"), homosexuals, the physically or mentally disabled, Jehovah's Witnesses, black people, members of the Communist Party, the Social Democratic Party, and the anti-Nazi Resistance, the Christian opposition (both Protestants and Catholics), and Freemasons, along with International Brigade soldiers in the Spanish Civil War, military deserters, conscientious objectors, escape helpers, capitulators, "habitual criminals", looters, and others charged with treason, military disobedience, or undermining the Nazi military, as well as Allied soldiers.

Tuesday 5 March 2019, Gunter Demnig, the German artists and creator of the Stolpersteine, was in Antwerp to lay 26 stones with the names of victims of Nazism.

Jacques Mahler was born in Neuberun on 20 December 1882, he was a broker.  Arrested in Antwerpen and put on Transport XXII B leaving Mechelen 20 September 1943.  Anna Mahler nee Margulies was born in Krakau, Poland in 1891. She was without profession and married to Jacques. During the war she was in Kaserne Dossin, Belgium. Deported with Transport XXII B from Kaserne Dossin to Auschwitz Birkenau Extermination Camp, Poland on 20 September 1943.

Helene Mahler was born in Antwerpen on 25 November 1908.   Paulette Liliane Buschel was born in Berlin on 22 April 1930. Armand Buschel was born in Lwow on 7 January 1934.  They were all arrested in Antwerpen and put on Transport XXII B leaving Mechelen 20 September 1943.

Sewer Suchowelski, born 15 June 1904 in Krakau. Put on the list at Kazerne Dossin 2 November 1943 leaving Mechelen 15 January 1944 on Transport XXIII, transportnumber 363.  He had tattoo 172402. Tobia was the daughter of Dawid and Lea Mandel (born Spitzel née Mandel).

See also: Brialmontlei 58 and Terliststraat 39

At the beginning of the last century, Mordka Suchowolski emigrated with his wife Golda and their sons Meyer Wolf (nicknamed Morris) and Sewer (John) from Poland to Antwerp. Here they had another daughter, Mathilda, who later moved to the United States. After the arrival of the Third Reich and the probable invasion of Belgium, she begged her family to emigrate as well, but unfortunately this fell on deaf ears.

Morris married Sabina Rakower in Antwerp and the two had a daughter, Suzanne. John then married Tobia Mandel. The family members built a new life here. For example, in addition to being a diamond dealer, John was also a masseur, boxing champion and artist. They lived in the Brialmontlei, Terliststraat and Antoon Van Dyckstraat. After the occupation, John and Morris were part of the Secret Army, the resistance.

In 1942, after the introduction of the yellow Star of David and the start of the deportations a little later, Mordka and Golda decided to go into hiding, just like Morris, Sabina, Tobia and Suzanne. They all ended up in the Ardennes village of Chardeneux. Morris continued his resistance work there, but was betrayed in July 1943. He and his wife were arrested, taken to the Dossinkazerne in Mechelen and later deported to Auschwitz. Sabina was immediately gassed there. Morris was deployed in various Arbeitskommandos, but suffered the same fate in Dachau in August 1944.

Golda, Mordka, Suzanne and Tobia were moved from Chardeneux to a monastery in Namur. That same August, it was bombed by Allied aircraft - they aimed at the bridges over the Meuse - and they were among the fatalities.

John remained in Antwerp, was arrested during a raid at the end of 1943 and ended up in the concentration camps of Auschwitz, Gross-Rosen and Buchenwald. He was murdered during a death march in 1945 towards Dachau.

Diamond cutter Moses Götz (b. 28/01/1897 in Jaroslaw, Poland) married to Ryfka Pschetizki (b. 16/06/1902 in Mlawa, Poland). Moses Götz was deported from the Dossin barracks to Auschwitz-Birkenau via Transport XIX on 15 January 1943 and subsequently perished.

Tony Tauba was born on August 17, 1904 in Dembitze, Poland. The Schnitzer family settled in Antwerp in 1922. In 1925 she married Samuel Kanner and they had 3 children: Wolf, Deborah and Isidor. Samuel died in 1939.  Despite these difficult circumstances and the care for her three children, Tony Tauba joined the resistance at the start of the war and, together with her brother Salomon and a Belgian friend, Mathilde Sohet, managed to transport Jewish families to France and Switzerland. to let flee.

In August 1942, the children Wolf and Deborah left Antwerp and were taken in by Oliva Minet Sohet, the sister of Mathilde Sohet, in the Walloon village of Agimont. Tony Tauba and Isidor were also supposed to join them there, but the night before they left for Agimont, both were arrested by the Antwerp police on behalf of the occupying forces because of their Jewish origin.  Mathilde Sohet still managed to get Isidor out of the school where they were held captive along with many other people of Jewish descent by saying that Isidor was her son. Tony Tauba was interned in the Dossin barracks in Mechelen, then deported to Auschwitz and murdered there. Her children Wolf, Deborah and Isidor survived the war.

Jacob van Os was born in Amsterdam on 22 February 1876. 

He was a diamond cutter and put on Transport XI leaving Mechelen on 26 September 1942.

Sura Rywka the wife of Szpigielman was born on 22/05/1889, arrested in summer 1942 and deported by the XIVth convoy, from Mechelen to Auschwitz.  Her husband Wolf, born on 5/15/1883, was also deported by the same convoy

Sabina Rakower, born 2 April 1905 in Podgorze and married to Meyer Suchowolski. She was a housewife. Sabina was put on the list at Kazerne Dossin 3 August 1943 leaving Mechelen 20 September 1943 on Transport XXIIB, transportnumber 62.

See also: Antoon Van Dyckstraat 67 and Terliststraat 39

At the beginning of the last century, Mordka Suchowolski emigrated with his wife Golda and their sons Meyer Wolf (nicknamed Morris) and Sewer (John) from Poland to Antwerp. Here they had another daughter, Mathilda, who later moved to the United States. After the arrival of the Third Reich and the probable invasion of Belgium, she begged her family to emigrate as well, but unfortunately this fell on deaf ears.

Morris married Sabina Rakower in Antwerp and the two had a daughter, Suzanne. John then married Tobia Mandel. The family members built a new life here. For example, in addition to being a diamond dealer, John was also a masseur, boxing champion and artist. They lived in the Brialmontlei, Terliststraat and Antoon Van Dyckstraat. After the occupation, John and Morris were part of the Secret Army, the resistance.

In 1942, after the introduction of the yellow Star of David and the start of the deportations a little later, Mordka and Golda decided to go into hiding, just like Morris, Sabina, Tobia and Suzanne. They all ended up in the Ardennes village of Chardeneux. Morris continued his resistance work there, but was betrayed in July 1943. He and his wife were arrested, taken to the Dossinkazerne in Mechelen and later deported to Auschwitz. Sabina was immediately gassed there. Morris was deployed in various Arbeitskommandos, but suffered the same fate in Dachau in August 1944.

Golda, Mordka, Suzanne and Tobia were moved from Chardeneux to a monastery in Namur. That same August, it was bombed by Allied aircraft - they aimed at the bridges over the Meuse - and they were among the fatalities.

John remained in Antwerp, was arrested during a raid at the end of 1943 and ended up in the concentration camps of Auschwitz, Gross-Rosen and Buchenwald. He was murdered during a death march in 1945 towards Dachau.

Moshe Wolf was born in Dukla (Galicia) on April 11, 1906.  Around 1923, Moshe joined his older brother Hatzkel, who had already arrived in Antwerp and had started working in the diamond industry.  Moshe worked for Chaim Shmuel Mandelbaum, who was born in Trzebinia (also in Galicia) in 1869, had arrived in Antwerp in 1904, and owned a diamond factory in Antwerp. Chaim Mandelbaum had 5 children of whom Henrietta, born in Antwerp on September 29, 1909, was the youngest. This is how Moshe met Henrietta, and they were married in Antwerp on January 15, 1929. The family lived at 3rd De Boey Street, which was then in the Jewish center of the city . Moshe and Henrietta had a daughter named Ruth (born March 20, 1932) .

Moshe was arrested by the Belgian police on September 8, 1942, and sent with several hundred Jews from Antwerp on the eighth transport. According to records, they arrived in Auschwitz, and he did not survive beyond September 11, 1942. Most members of the extended Mandelbaum family were actually deported during the fall of 1942, except for David and Rosa and their 2 girls Edith and Noemi, who went into hiding in Antwerp, and Henrietta and Ruth.

Henrietta, being naturalized Belgian, was at first safeguarded from deportation, but the situation of Jews in Antwerp steadily worsened. In November 1942, thanks to Mathilde, a very faithful non-Jewish friend of the Mandelbaum family, Henrietta and Ruth found a hiding place in Agimont, a small village close to the French border.  Alas, 18 months later, both were captured and taken to Charleville-Mézières and from there to Drancy (France). On March 7, 1944, they were put on transport number 69 to Auschwitz, and they likely did not survive past March 10, 1944.

Hendrik was a fitting worker. He spreads the secret press of the Independence Front and takes charge of the Trade Union Struggle Committee at Mercantile after the arrest of his predecessors Jos Vermaesen and Frans Adriaenssens. After his arrest, Hendrik is locked up in Breendonk. He is deported and murdered in Gusen at the age of 23.

As a teacher of morality, he saw society change in the late 1938s. Jan, concerned about freedom and democracy, joined the Resistance. During a night out, he and his fiancé were stopped by Flemish-speaking men. Locked up in the Begijnenstraat, he was transported via Breendonk to Vught in the Netherlands, then to Dachau in Germany and Natzweiler in France. In Breendonk he met his executioners Fernand Wijss, a Fleming, member of the Waffen SS.

In Natzweiler he is badly injured, he is pushed by a guard into a boiling pot, where machine parts were cleaned. Jan's arm is badly burned because of this but a Belgian team of nurses and doctor ensure that he receives the necessary care. Jan ends up on transport again in Dachau, a train ride of 511 km. There he is liberated by the Allies and in 1945 Jan arrived back in Antwerp.

Jette Mahler-Poser was born in Krakau on 2 March 1858. Reizel Ryfka Margulies-Gross was born in Mielce on 25 December 1867. They were both arrested in Antwerpen and put on Transport XI leaving Mechelen 26 September 1942.

Mordka Lieberman, born 05/26/1882 and his wife Malka Zin, born 05/17/1882 were both deported by the 15th convoy to Auschwitz, where they were murdered because they were born Jewish.

The Pack- Lieberman family.  Joseph Pack, born 01/17/1910 - Diamantaire.  Mattel Lieberman wife of Pack Joseph, born on 01.05.1908 in Vlanov.  Their two children: Paula born on 21.09.1935, schoolgirl and Tonia born on 19.11.1937. The whole family was deported by the 15th convoy from Mechelen to Auschwitz.

Paul Pesche Lipschitz, born July 10, 1892 in Windau, Latvia, died in Auschwitz (murdered in the gas chambers).  Son of Mozes Isaak Lipschitz and Rebecca Lipschitz

Florie Lipschitz (Sherman) born February 11, 1897, died in Auschwitz (murdered in the gas chambers). Florie was the wife of Paul Pesche Lipschitz and mother of Helena Lipschitz; Joanna Lipschitz; Mona Monica Lipschitz and Mina Lipschitz

Fischel Grosman was born in Jasina, Czechoslovakia on 21 November 1909. He was a furrier. Put on Transport XVII leaving Mechelen 31 October 1942

Adolf Steil was born on 28 October 1989 in Lemberg (Lwow), married to Eliza Meizeles and was a graphic designer – painter.  

Left Mechelen on 20 September 1943 with Transport XXII, N° 20.

Eliza Meizeles was born on 31 March 1907 in Lemberg, married to Adolf Steil and a housewife.  

Left Mechelen on 19 April 1943 with Transport XX, N° 1527.

Marck Steil was born on 5 September 1929 in Lemberg, he was a student.  Left Mechelen on 24 Octobere 1942 with Transport XIV, N° 641

Eugenia Steil was born on 31 January 1902 in Lemberg, she was a tailor. Left Mechelen on 15 August 1942 with Transport III, N° 207.

In January 1941, Salomon and Esther Birnzweig, together with their son Idel, from Antwerp, were forced to evacuate to Alken, Limburg province, as part of the German policy to remove as many non-naturalized Belgian Jews from this city. In Alken, they stayed with Liz Knaepen. When they were allowed to return to Antwerp, they sent their daughter Toni Schwarz, her husband Herman and their two children, five-year-old Edith and three-year-old Emile, to Alken, in 1942, in the hope that they would find a permanent hiding place there.

And indeed, Toni and Herman were given the place the parents had earlier occupied with Liz Knaepen. During these years, Toni would make herself useful by mending the clothes of the extended Knaepen family, especially the men’s pants, while Herman helped out in the fields. Toni and Herman’s two children were taken in by Liz Knaepen’s brother, Jozef and his wife Elizabeth Knaepen. They had a large family of nine children. The arrival of the two small playmates caused great delight with the younger Knaepens, especially Remi and Louis, who were of about the same age as Edith and Emile. Their older sons had been taken by the Germans for forced labor. Edith slept with the girls, sharing a bed with the youngest. In order to maximize the children’s safety, they were registered in their adoptive parents’ marriage book in the names of two of their children who had died. Although the children’s parents lived next door, this was kept a secret from them and only after liberation was the family reunited.

Meyer Gliksberg born 03/12/1892, deported by the XVIIth convoy, 31/10/1942. Sent as forced laborer in summer 1942 on the Atlantic Wall (TODT Company). Killed in Auschwitz.

Abraham Boruchowitch was born in Baldony on 13 September 1887, he was a chef-marker.  Arrested in Antwerpen and put on Transport IX leaving Mechelen 12 September 1942.

Anna was the daughter of Elias Chaim Rutzki and Chaja Riwka Lipszyc. Born in Antwerp on 12.01.1920 with the Belgian nationality. She was a child prodigy pianist, having received the “ROME” Prize

Nico David Workum was an engeneer, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on 07.10.1907. He was the son of Hartog Workum en Adèle Dusseldorp. His grandparents by mothers side were Nathan Dusseldorp and Rebecca Stynberg, by fathers side David Workum and Duifje De Jong.

Nico married Anna Rutzki on 18.05.1943, he resided in Belgium since 1923 . He was the president of the local branch of the Jewish Council of Belgium in Antwerp

Elias Chaim Rutzki, his wife Chaja Riwka Lipszyc and their children Anna and Siegfried were arrested at home in the night of September 3rd-4th 1943 during „Aktion Iltis“, the raid against Jewish who had the Belgian nationality.  Amongst those arrested that night was also Anna’s husband Nico Workum. All five family members were brought to Kazerne Dossin . This train left Mechelen September 20, 1943 and arrived in Auschwitz-Birkenau September 22, 1943.

Abraham Feld was born on 21 March 1909 in Wolamiechowa, he was a furrier.  He was put on the list at Kazerne Dossin 29 October 1942 and left Mechelen 31 October 1942 with Transport XVII, N° 17, tattoo Nr 8955

Leni  Schwimmerova was born on 26 May 1907 in Munkacevo and married to Abraham Feld. She left Mechelen on 15 January 1943 on Transport XVIII, transport N° 273.

Faiga was born in 1863 in Rozan.  Left Mechelen on 24 October 1942 with Transport XIV, N° 925.

In a letter that Hans sent from Izieu to his mother in the sanatorium, the ten-year-old wrote:

"100,000,000 big kisses from your son who is always thinking of you."

Carolus Verbeeck was a clerk, a member of the Independence Front and was suspected of communist activity. Carolus is murdered in Neuengamme at the age of 40.

On October 23, 1900, Israël Neumann was born in Nisko, Poland. He emigrated to America with his parents, three sisters, and two brothers. Israël later decided to return to Europe. He and his wife Eleonore had a hard time making ends meet. Neumann worked various jobs, such as waiter, hotel porter, and eventually became a street vendor. One evening in early October 1940, he was arrested by the Geheime Feldpolizei and taken to Breendonk together with 9 other Jews. Israël Neumann ended up in room 1 with Walter Obler, a Jew himself, as room captain.

Once locked up in Breendonk, Israël becomes the plaything of the SS leadership and some - Jewish - room superiors (including Walter Obler) because of his stature and appearance. The harsh camp life with forced labor, a meager ration, bullying and violence is deadly for any human being, and Israël Neumann is no exception. Day by day he becomes weaker and has less resistance, and eventually - exhausted after 9 months in Breendonk Camp - he will be murdered in July 1941.

Isaac (Ytzkhak), 39 years old, born on 28 October 1902 in Warsaw, Poland.

his wife Liwcza (Luisa), 40 years old, born Furcajg (or Furtzeig) on 30 October 1901 in Warsaw.

Golda, 13 years old, born on 17 April 1929 in Warsaw.

Abraham, 5 years old, born on 22 November 1936 in Antwerp.

Memorial plaque in Villelaure

While Vaucluse was in the southern zone, administered by the Vichy government, the arrests of Jews began in August 1942. These arrests did not spare the children.  In Villelaure, on 26 August 1942, Jewish children were arrested and deported with their families:  Issac, Idesa, Golda (13 years old) and Abraham (4 years old) Ajgengold, Only Issac Ajgengold will return from the Auschwitz extermination camp.

They are on the list of Jewish arrests of 24 August 1942. Transferred to the Milles camp by the gendarmerie on 26 August 1942, they will be deported by convoy N° 29 on 7 September 1942.  The mother and children were murdered on 12 September 1942. Only Itchek will survive in 1945.

Abraham Echiel Souritz was born on 22 March 1894 in Pskow and was a sales man.  He was put on the list at Kazerne Dossin on 28 January 1943 leaving Mechelen 19 April 1943 on Transport XX, transportnumber 276

Paulette Souritz was born on 16 April 1928 in Antwerpen, she was a student.  Paulette was put on the list at Kazerne Dossin on 28 January 1943 leaving Mechelen 19 April 1943 on Transport XX, transportnumber 277

On February 2, 1942, Léon De Neve was arrested at the age of sixteen, together with 21 other young people between the ages of sixteen and nineteen, for acts of resistance.  In August 1941, a few decided to start a sports club as a cover for acts of resistance, soon they were about twenty and found accommodation in the premises of Belgian wrestling champion Frits Janssens in the Diepestraat in Antwerp. After the sport, the sports activities were expanded with acts of resistance in the Stuivenberg district, Spoor Noord, the harbor and other parts of the city. Realizing that they could not continue as a small resistance group, they sought contact with other resistance organizations.

In November 1941 they started to work under the wing of the resistance movement led by Marcel Louette 'Witte Brigade Fidelio'. After their arrest, they were imprisoned in the German section, the Kriegswehrmacht Gefängnis of the Begijnenstraat prison. From February 2, 1942, they were therefore no longer on Belgian territory, although they were taken in turn to the infamous SS headquarters on the Della Faillelaan in Wilrijk to be interrogated there. These interrogations were conducted by the agents of the Security Police, assisted by Flemish interpreters and Flemish SS men.

At the end of May 1942, all 22 were transferred to Germany, first to the prison in Essen. The group ended up divided among the concentration camps Dachau, Mauthausen, Flossenburg, Gross-Rosen, Gross-Bären, Herzbruch, Vaihingen, Buchenwald, Theresienstadt. Léon De Neve ended up in the Dachau and Ottobrunn concentration camps. He was liberated at the end of April 1945.

Salomon Langerman was born on 19 September 1907 in Krakau and was a furrier. He was put on the list at Kazerne Dossin on 18 May 1944 leaving Mechelen on 19 May 1944 on Transport XXV, transportnumber 299. Tattoo number: 2699

Zysla Brandla Blajwas was born on 19 February 1917 in Warschau.  She was married to Salomon Langerman.  Put on the list at Kazerne Dossin on 18 May 1944 leaving Mechelen on 19 May 1944 on Transport XXV, transportnumber 300.  Tattoo number: 5188

During the war, the couple registered in the compulsory Jewish register. On 21 August 1942, Salomon and Zysla had a son, Arthur. The family lived at Plantin en Moretuslei 9. At the end of March 1944, the occupiers arrested the Langerman family in Antwerp. Zysla Blajwas and Salomon Langerman were interned in the Dossinkazerne. Their son Arthur was placed in the Pouponnière d’Uccle, a children’s home of the Vereeniging van Joden in België under the supervision of the German occupier.

On 19 May 1944, Salomon and Zysla were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau on Transport XXV. Salomon died in early 1945. Zysla was transferred from Auschwitz to Ravensbrück concentration camp in August 1944. After her return, she was reunited with her son. Traumatized, she withdrew into silence, secrets and pain, a situation that would mark Arthur forever.

Adolphe Wechsler was born on 16 July 1862 in Braila.  Put on the list at Kazerne Dossin on 22 October 1942 leaving Mechelen on 24 October 1942 on Transport XV, transportnumber 340.

Regine Wechsler-Predinger was born on 8 October 1874 in Braila and was married to Adolf Wechsler. Put on the list at Kazerne Dossin on 22 October 1942 leaving Mechelen 24 October 1942 on Transport XV, transportnumber 341.

Mala Leja Gutgold widow Susskind was born in Poland on 03/13 1892 and did everything she could to shelter her two children, who survived the Holocaust.  Going so as to resell all this furniture, to buy them false papers and visas.  In order to survive, when her children crossed the Swiss border, she worked as a cleaner and did not eat enough. She was deported from Mechelen by the XIIIth convoy.

Her son David, born in 1925 and died on November 25, 2011, was the founder in 1959 with his friends of the Jewish cultural and sports center. This center defends a secular Judaism which wants to reconcile Judaism and free examination.

Joseph Jonas Hakker, a Jewish Amsterdammer, had an eventful life, characterized by escape, perseverance and courage. Hakker witnessed the first raid in Antwerp, on the night of August 15 to 16. Not much later he decides to flee to Sweden. That escape attempt failed. Hakker was arrested by the German occupiers and was held in the Dossin barracks for about two months. On January 15, 1943, he and about 1,600 other arrested Jews were put on the deportation train to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. He manages to escape with sixty others and joins the Liège resistance.

After the war he returns to his bakery "Kleinblatt" in Provinciestraat, where a stumbling stone was placed in his memory on Sunday in the presence of his granddaughter Rachel Hakker. The bakery is no longer there, there is a drugstore on that site, but the stumbling stone keeps the memory of the inventor of the Antwerp Handje alive.

What is the story of the Antwerp Hands? In 1934, at the initiative of Jos Hakker, the Antwerp confectioners' association organized a competition to give Antwerp a culinary specialty. Jos Hakker himself also took part and won with the now well-known “Antwerpse Handje”.

That cookie in the shape of a hand refers to the legend of the giant Antigoon and Brabo. Antigoon demanded a heavy toll from all skippers sailing on the Scheldt, and those who could not or refused to pay had their hands cut off. Brabo, entered into battle with Antigoon and cut off the giant's hand and threw it into the Scheldt, hence "hand-throwing".

After the German invasion of 1940, mother Louisa and son Lucien choose the Resistance, daughter Lucia is involved in their activities. They smuggle weapons and spread illegal press. The three are denounced and arrested on July 2, 1943. Mother and daughter make an incredible journey through prisons and concentration camps until they are liberated on May 5, 1945 in Mauthausen. Lucien survives Dachau but proves exhausted and deathly ill.

Lucien Rombaut, the twin brother of Lucia, dies in Neeroetern, 3 years after his liberation, on April 12, 1948 as a result of his stay in the concentration camp.

Jaak was a fitting worker. He was a member of the Trade Union Struggle Committee. He raised support for the families of arrested resistance fighters and syndicalists. After his arrest and deportation, Jaak was murdered in Gusen at the age of 22.

He came to Antwerp as a child, together with his parents, until he and his family had to flee from the Nazis in 1940. Wach was captured in 1942 and imprisoned in the Sobibor concentration camp in Poland, where he was murdered at the age of 52.

September 2019: this stumbling stone is no longer there due to renovation works in that area.

August 2021: New stone placed.

Szafirsztejn, Kejla Gitla was born on 08/24/1894 and was deported to Auschwitz by the XIXth convoy and murdered.

See also: Antoon Van Dyckstraat 67 and Brialmontlei 58

At the beginning of the last century, Mordka Suchowolski emigrated with his wife Golda and their sons Meyer Wolf (nicknamed Morris) and Sewer (John) from Poland to Antwerp. Here they had another daughter, Mathilda, who later moved to the United States. After the arrival of the Third Reich and the probable invasion of Belgium, she begged her family to emigrate as well, but unfortunately this fell on deaf ears.

Morris married Sabina Rakower in Antwerp and the two had a daughter, Suzanne. John then married Tobia Mandel. The family members built a new life here. For example, in addition to being a diamond dealer, John was also a masseur, boxing champion and artist. They lived in the Brialmontlei, Terliststraat and Antoon Van Dyckstraat. After the occupation, John and Morris were part of the Secret Army, the resistance.

In 1942, after the introduction of the yellow Star of David and the start of the deportations a little later, Mordka and Golda decided to go into hiding, just like Morris, Sabina, Tobia and Suzanne. They all ended up in the Ardennes village of Chardeneux. Morris continued his resistance work there, but was betrayed in July 1943. He and his wife were arrested, taken to the Dossinkazerne in Mechelen and later deported to Auschwitz. Sabina was immediately gassed there. Morris was deployed in various Arbeitskommandos, but suffered the same fate in Dachau in August 1944.

Golda, Mordka, Suzanne and Tobia were moved from Chardeneux to a monastery in Namur. That same August, it was bombed by Allied aircraft - they aimed at the bridges over the Meuse - and they were among the fatalities.

John remained in Antwerp, was arrested during a raid at the end of 1943 and ended up in the concentration camps of Auschwitz, Gross-Rosen and Buchenwald. He was murdered during a death march in 1945 towards Dachau.

No photo was found for little Lucienne Friedler, born in 1939 and murdered in Auschwitz.

Wim Wuyts was a teacher in the municipal school in the Markgravelei. He joined the resistance after the Nazi occupation. He was active in the resistance movement Independence Front and the Secret Service Socrates. He also worked on the clandestine press.

He was arrested in Antwerp on August 5, 1944 and, after a stay in the Begijnenstraat prison, was taken to the Schützenhof concentration camp, just a few days before the liberation. In severe cold, poorly dressed and with insufficient food, he and many others had to work long hours in a metal factory. He contracted pneumonia, received no care and died on February 3, 1945.

Alphonsus Spillemaeckers was a ship mechanic. As a member of the White Brigade, he spreads secret press, collects intelligence and sabotages the war production of the German occupier. Alphonsus is murdered at the age of 53 in Wetterfeld during a death march.

Willy Souritz was born in Antwerp 12 September 1924 and was a diamond cutter. He was put on the list at Kazerne Dossin 27 August 1942 and left Mechelen with Transport VI, number 984.