#Story

The optician in the resistance

Wim Lindenhovius works in the glasses and clocks business of his father and German mother. He is also part of a resistance group involved in gathering information, sheltering people in hiding and transporting weapons.

He is also a member of the voluntary fire brigade, so he is not called up for the ‘Arbeitseinsatz’. Moreover, because of this position, he is still allowed to take to the streets during curfew. To give the impression in the evening and at night that he is out and about as a fireman, his fireman's helmet hangs from his handlebars, but his inside pocket never lacks a pistol.

The Doetinchem resistance

During the first two years of the occupation, there is hardly any resistance. After Jews were deported, scarcity and repression increased and more and more men had to go to Germany for the ‘Arbeitseinsatz’, resistance grew, and resistance increased. In Doetinchem, five groups emerge with their own commanders. They lead a large number of resistance fighters divided into groups of eight on average. The members generally only know the members of their own group. This avoids putting the other groups at risk in case of arrest or betrayal.

Heezenstraat 29, Doetinchem
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