Roodenburgerstraat 1a

Alice Blitz was born on July 18, 1923 in Leiden and lived at Haarlemmerstraat 315. Her parents, Jacob Blitz and Esther Hangjas, were loving pillars in her life. Her father was a music teacher and taught violin to talented students. The family moved to Zoeterwoudsesingel 10 in 1936, where Alice grew up and was known for her beautiful blue eyes and dimples in her cheeks. She took an active part in religious education and did well in school. After the forced departure of the Jewish girls from the HBS, Alice started working as a dental assistant and later as a domestic assistant in the Jewish orphanage in Leiden. On March 17, 1943, Alice was arrested together with the children and employees and taken to Westerbork. On March 26, 1943, at the age of 19, she was murdered in Sobibor together with 25 of 'her' children.

Lotte and Henny Adler grew up in Frankfurt am Main during the rise of Nazi Germany. Their father was deported and died in Buchenwald concentration camp. After Kristallnacht, their mother, Clara Adler, decided to flee to America. Lotte, Henny and their girlfriend Edith were put on a Jewish children's transport to the Netherlands. In Leiden they ended up in the Jewish orphanage. Lotte promised her mother that she would always stay with Henny. They went to school and made friends. Lotte felt safe, but the war also came to the Netherlands. Eventually they were arrested and put on a transport. Lotte sent a postcard with the words: "We're going strong; I'm singing while it's crying inside me."

Floortje Altenberg comes to Leiden in 1929 and starts working in the Jewish Orphanage, where she takes care of the children and also lives internally. The orphanage moves to the Roodenburgerstraat and offers shelter to Jewish children who have become orphans or whose parents cannot care for them. Floortje is responsible for the daily care and supervision of the children. She creates a loving and healthy environment in the orphanage. With the rise of the Nazis, more and more children from Central and Eastern Europe are being taken in. On March 17, 1943, the orphanage is evacuated and Floortje and the children are taken to Westerbork and later to Sobibór, where they are all murdered.

Leo Auerhaan lost his father at a young age and was placed in the Jewish orphanage in Leiden at the age of seven. He received a good education there and learned to work leather. After his 18th birthday he moved to his sister Jetty in Amsterdam. During the war he was forced to stay in a Jewish labor camp, but thanks to a telegram from his sister he was prevented from being sent to Westerbork. In Westerbork he found several jobs and tried to be exempted as a 'non-Jew'. Unfortunately, he failed to do so and was sent to Auschwitz, where he was murdered after a few months.

David Jozef Beem was born in 1922 in Rotterdam. He grew up in the Jewish Orphanage together with his sisters and brother after their mother was nursed for a long time. At eighteen, David left for a kibbutz in Low Keppel, where he prepared to emigrate to Israel. Unfortunately, Hitler forbade the Jews to emigrate, and David was deported to Vught concentration camp and later to Sobibor, where he was murdered at the age of 21. Jozef David Beem, also known as Jopie, was admitted to the orphanage at the age of four. He worked there as a messenger and auxiliary stoker until he was deported to Sobibor and killed at the age of 16. The entire Beem family did not survive the war.

Bram de Beer, born on August 10, 1939, lived from July 1942 to March 1943 in the Jewish orphanage in Leiden. His mother died shortly after his birth, and his father later remarried. On March 17, 1943, Bram was deported to Westerbork, where his father and the rest of the family were also. A preserved thank you card from his father reveals that Bram was described as a shy child. His half-brother Simon was born on August 24. On November 16, 1943, the entire family was deported to Auschwitz. Bram de Beer was only 4 years old.

Rachel Bierschenk, born on November 1, 1894 in Amsterdam, grew up in a large family in the Jewish quarter. She was a dressmaker and seamstress by trade and worked in the Jewish orphanage in Leiden. She organized a club for older girls there and was an active member of the New Israelite Society. On March 17, 1943, the orphanage was evacuated, and Rachel was deported to Westerbork and then to Sobibor, where she was murdered on March 26.

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