The fallen resistance people in Limburg

Harry Hanssen
(Gerardus Hendrikus)

beeldbankwo2.nl …

Harry Harrie Hanssen was rayon leader of the L.O. in Sevenum.
Married to Maria Jacoba (Koos) Boots, died 1996. [1]
Cammaert writes: One of the leaders of the L.O. in the region. Afterwards he held a position at provincial level and helped organize the L.O. in the district of Gulpen. [2.1]
Harrie was the secretary of the local branch of the Catholic Action.
So in early 1943 vicar Gommans of Sevenum asked him to help build an organization for people in hiding, also called divers. Hanssen was appointed Sevenum’s diver’s chief (local contact), and in the course of the spring, in cooperation with Gommans and several helpers of escaped prisoners of war on farm “Rust Roest,” the local organization for aid to divers was established. [2.2]
That was the farm of Simon Stendert Groot.
Apparently Harry was a talent for organization:
Vicar Van Enckevort asked G.H. Hanssen from Sevenum to go to Gulpen and build an L.O. organization on the Venlo model. For six months Hanssen and his assistant J.G. van de Ven spent three or four days weekly in Gulpen. [2.3]
Harrie also worked with the primary school teacher Eugénie Boutet for the Westerweel group. This group helped Jewish youths who wanted to emigrate to Palestine to go into hiding. [1][3]

Eugénie Boutet was Harrie Hanssen’s successor as head of the local LO unit in April 1943. [4]
Below is a photo from May 2, 1986, showing Harrie Hanssen standing in front of the house where he is said to have lived during the war. This is in Venray, 18 km from Sevenum. [5]
What is certain is that did live in Venray after the war. He was interviewed there by Cammaert and is also buried there.
In the obituary of the board, management and team of the Mavo De Kolk school, it says about him, among other things:
We look back with respect on the period 1958-1985 during which Mr. Hanssen served on the board of Mavo De Kolk in Venray. [6]
Next to it is the obituary of the family, which states, among other things
Knight in the Order of St. Sylvester
Honored by Yad Vashem
Bearer of the Memorial Cross of the Resistance
Honored by the Confédération Européenne des Anciens Combattants [6]
This is the Cross of the European Veterans’ Association (CEAC) or Croix du combattant de l’Europe. [7]


Venray, 2 mei 1986

Footnotes

1. humanitarisme.nl Gerardus Henricus Hanssen
2. Cammaert, A. P. M. (1994). Het verborgen front: Geschiedenis van de georganiseerde illegaliteit in de provincie Limburg tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.
   1. Deel 1, vaak genoemde personen, pp.18ff
   2. Hoofdst. 6, De L.O., p.593
   3. Hoofdst. 6, De L.O., p.691
3. Westerweel-groep, Wikipedia • Nederlands • Deutsch • English • עברית
4. Eugénie Boutet, Wikipedia • Nederlands
5. OpenStreetMap Venray – Sevenum
6. Peel en Maas | 1993 | 18 februari 1993 | pagina 19
7. Croix du combattant de l’Europe, Wikipedia • Nederlands • Deutsch • Français
8. https://beeldbankwo2.nl/nl/beelden/detail/e9faba9e-3381-2ea6-e9e0-7511ae25d9ae/media/2d009b7f-311e-2982-f94e-c3e0828a88ef