JERUSALEM (JTA) — Yad Vashem posthumously recognized a Dutch couple as Righteous Among the Nations for hiding two Jewish boys during the Holocaust.
A ceremony was held Monday at the Holocaust remembrance center in Jerusalem for Jantje and Johannes Krijl.
One of the boys saved, Gershon Eisenmann, was on hand along with his family. The late Mechel Jamenfeld, the other boy saved, was represented by his wife.
The award was presented to Sandra Krijl, a granddaughter of the rescuers.
Jamenfeld and Eisenmann became very attached to each other while in hiding at the Krijls, according to Yad Vashem. Jamenfeld’s parents were killed in the Holocaust. Eisenmann’s parents survived and took in Jamenfeld after World War II. The Krijls had given Jamenfeld the choice to remain with them permanently, but also told him it was OK to live with his “own people.”
Jamenfeld’s sister, Miriam, who also survived in hiding in the Netherlands, stayed with her rescuers after the Holocaust.
Jamenfeld moved to Israel in 1952. Eisenmann remained in Holland.
The Krijls were officially recognized as Righteous Among the Nations in October. Their names will be added to the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations at Yad Vashem.
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