Naftalie was the son of Haarlem rabbi Simon Philip de Vries and Judith de Jong. He grew up in Haarlem, completed secondary education, and was a korfball player and youth sports leader. In 1929 he married Mirjam “Mik” Davida Roos; they had two sons. After living in several Dutch cities, the family moved to Haarlem in 1939 and by March 1941 were registered at Wagenweg 142r as under-tenants.
In August 1942, Naftalie ignored a call to report for deportation and the family went into hiding in Nieuwkoop. They were betrayed; when police arrived on 7 April 1943, Naftalie surrendered to protect others and was arrested with his wife and children. They were taken to Amsterdam and then interned in Westerbork. In January 1944 the family was deported to Bergen-Belsen. On 11 April 1945, while being moved toward Theresienstadt as part of a forced transport, Naftalie died of starvation and exhaustion near Lüneburg at age 42. He was later reburied in Haarlem.
