De Waele-Godschalk family. Collection

Elisabeth Godschalk was born in Rotterdam on 25 September 1920 as the first daughter of Samuel Godschalk, born in Amsterdam on 2 September 1893, and Sara Tokkie, born in Rotterdam on 9 September 1901. Sara and Samuel had gotten married one year before that, on 23 October 1919. Two years later, on 24 February 1922, the couple had a second daughter, Judith Godschalk. The family lived together in the Netherlands. In August 1922, Samuel migrated to Belgium. According to his immigration file, Sara, Elisabeth and Judith did not come with him. They remained in the Netherlands at first, and were reunited with Samuel later. Elisabeth came to Belgium in October 1935. Her sister Judith arrived two years later, in 1937. It is unclear when Sara came to Belgium. The family changed their address many times. Their last address was the Van Steenlantstraat 29 in Deurne (Antwerp). On 17 July 1937, Samuel Godschalk got his Belgian work permit to work as a diamond cutter in Deurne. In that same year, youngest daughter Judith was enrolled at a vocational school for diamond cutters. Oldest daughter Elisabeth got her work permit as a seamstress on 9 April 1940. In November 1941, Elisabeth married Frans Wijngaarden, a catholic Belgian from Antwerp. This way, Elisabeth was naturalised and received the Belgian nationality. Frans worked as a mecanic’s assistant in Germany during the war. After the marriage, she and Frans moved to the Van Lissumstraat 54, also in Deurne. During the war, Elisabeth, Judith and Samuel were registered at the Jewish Register of Belgium (Registre des Juifs de Belgique - Jodenregister van België). This registration was mandatory as of 28 October 1940. Elisabeth’s mother Sara was not registered. She sadly passed away in a hospital on 12 March 1942. On 17 March 1942, Samuel Godschalk and Judith Godschalk were registered as living together by the Association of Jews in Belgium (Vereeniging der Joden in België - Association des Juifs en Belgique). On 27 August 1942, Judith Godschalk presented herself ‘voluntarily’ to the Dossin Barracks, after she had received an Arbeitseinsatzbefehl to work in the East. She was registered as person number 79 on the list of transport VII. This train left Malines on 1st September 1942 and arrived in Auschwitz-Birkenau on 3 September. Unfortunately she did not survive deportation. Elisabeth’s father Samuel also passed away during the war. He was claimed in May or June 1942 as an Organization Todt worker, for forced labour in France. He died on 11 September 1942 in Boulogne-sur-mer. Elisabeth was also interned at the SS-Sammellager in Malines. She most likely arrived at the barracks around the end of 1942 or the beginning of 1943. Unlike her sister, she was not immediately deported, as she had the Belgian nationality. On 11 June 1943, Elisabeth was released from the Dossin Barracks thanks to her marriage. However, after the war, Elisabeth divorced Frans Wijngaarden. In 1948, Elisabeth gave birth to a son, Désiré, named after his father and her second husband. On 24 February 1951, Elisabeth married Désiré De Waele. Désiré was born in Antwerp on 13 March 1909 and was the widower of Yvonne Bertha Vanleene. Later, the couple also had a second child, a daughter, named Selma. Elisabeth also started her long battle to receive compensation for the suffrage of her family during the war. She passed away in her own home at a young age on 19 December 1963 and was buried two days later in Deurne.

Désiré De Waele, son of Elisabeth Godschalk and Désiré De Waele, kindly donated his mother’s archive to Kazerne Dossin in 2018. He entrusted Kazerne Dossin with the digital copies of a selection of family photos and documents, and donated a series of original documents.

Désiré De Waele, son of Elisabeth Godschalk and Désiré De Waele, 2018