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Important Thank You’s
It goes without saying that my brother and I would not be here if it had not been for the brave and generous efforts of Frederik & Sophia Martina Keijzer, Anton & Bernardina Wilhelmina Rook and their son, Anton Rook, Barend & Willempje Aarts, Rinske & Aart van den Brink, Aalt J. van den Berg and at least five other families in Ermelo, Apeldoorn and nearby towns. It must also be noted, however, that I would never have connected with any of these families had it not been for the efforts of several extraordinary people, Anje van Buuren-Meinardi, Peter Yska, André Siraa, Henk Esselink and Dr. Siraa’s daughter, Tanya.
Anje first became involved in December 2015, has been on this journey every step of the way and continues to send me important information about the Family Staal. Peter’s published interview of Anton Rook, Jr. (supplied by Anje and available on this website), led me to Mr. Rook; in addition, Peter has provided us with important information about Ermelo and the Staals, and he meticulously planned the amazing day in Ermelo for all of us on July 25, 2016. André and his daughter have been involved from the start as well: Ms. Siraa’s trip to Los Angeles to view my father’s Shoah interview started the ball rolling. André and his daughter have provided data, translations and family stories, as well as the presentation of the treasured crystal candlestick, which you can read about in the Yad Vashem Application. They also graciously hosted Hannah and me in Amsterdam July 24-26, 2016 and thus, once again, their family provided shelter to the Staals. To this extraordinary group: Dank u wel.
Henk Esselink, Roelof van Buuren, Anje van Buuren-Meinardi, Tanya Siraa, Hannah Rosen, Janny & Anton Rook (hidden), Arnoud Rook, Peter Yska
Many thanks, too, to Nick Jones and Steve Reed at JRNL.com and Taylor Jones at Studio Pilot for their expertise and creativity in designing and building this website.
Finally, many thanks to my husband, Steve, who has been tremendously supportive. Heartfelt thanks to all.