All the fallen resistance people in Limburg

Theodoor Heltzel (Thei)

Het Grote Gebod – L.O.

Farmer. On Sunday October 8, 1944, he fell victim to one of the church raids that took place on that day throughout the area in order to catch forced laborers. He was arrested at the church exit by the Green Police. Via camps in Wuppertal and Lehrte, Heltzel ended up in Viersen where he was put to work for so-called Schanzarbeit (construction of defence works). In mid-November 1944 he managed to return to the Netherlands together with his brother and some fellow villagers. In a forest near Herkenbosch he was noticed by German soldiers and immediately killed by a bullet in the heart region. Presumably he was mistaken for a spy.

Sources & Literature

• He was a member of soccer club Beegden from the village of the same name, now VV Hebes. For this reason, his name is on the KNVB-memorial
• Oorlogsmonument Roermond (War memorial)
• Oorlogsgravenstichting.nl
• https://wo2slachtoffers.nl/bio/52133/Heltzel-Theodoor.htm