us-005578-irn514790
type: RecordSet
archival history: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
biographical history: Margalit Ben Ami was born on October 9, 1937, as Gretha Dotsch in Amsterdam, Netherlands. She is the middle daughter of Samuel Dotsch (b. October 11, 1911) and Elisabeth Viskoop Dotsch (b. June 25, 1910). Samuel owned a leather goods workshop in which he produced handbags and belts. Elisabeth helped in the business, but she mainly took care of the children. The oldest daughter, Sonja, was born on January 29, 1936, and the youngest, Carla, was born on March 9, 1941. The Dotsch family lived in Amsterdam on Transvaalkade 36 on the third floor. Samuel and Elisabeth, who both came from families with four children, met in a Jewish choir. In 1936 Samuel joined the Republican forces in the Spanish Civil War. The Dotsch family continued to live in their apartment until September 2, 1942. On that day two young people from the Communist Student Organization came at 9 AM to pick up Greatha and place her in hiding. Her mother told 5 year old Gretha that good friends were going to take her to another house where she needed to be a good girl and not cry and where people would be very nice to her. Gretha was very happy to go with the two students as they took her to Zeist, Netherlands by train. Gretha announced during the journey that her sister had a star and that when she turned six years old she would have one as well. Luckily, no one reacted. Gretha was placed with the Banens family who had eight children of their own. Mrs. Banens took Gretha on condition that her parents not know where she was placed. Gretha was given a new name: Ingrid Maria Theresia Tulleners, born in June 1940, from Indonesia. The real Ingrid was killed in the German bombing of Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 1940. Gretha was unwilling to accept her new name. It took two weeks to convince her that in her heart she was still Gretha Dotsch but, if asked by strangers, she needed to say her new name. Joop and Jenneke Banens taught Gretha reading and arithmetic and never let her outside their household. Joop Banens w…
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: nld
has or had subject: 701
has or had subject: 843
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn514790
record resource extent: folder 1
record resource structure: The Margalit Ben Ami papers is arranged in a single series.
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: The Margalit Ben Ami papers consist of a ration book issued to Margalit Ben Ami under a false name (Ingrid Maria Theresia Tulleners), two letters written by Ben Ami's rescuers, and a letter written by Ben Ami to Santa Claus. The letters were sent to Ben Ami's mother, Elisabeth Dotsch, who was also in hiding. Also included in the papers are three photographs of the Banens family who rescued and hid Ben Ami during the Holocaust.
title: Margalit Ben Ami papers