Truus Menger-Oversteegen
On June 18, 2016, our valued and beloved board member and founder, Truus Menger-Oversteegen, passed away.
The resistance fighter
Truus was one of the most famous resistance fighters of World War II.
She was 16 when the war broke out. Her parents were divorced, and Truus and her younger sister Freddie stayed with their mother. Poverty was rampant, yet they took in German refugees. Later, Truus distributed illegal newspapers like “De Vonk,” “De Waarheid,” and the call for the February Strike. “It just happened naturally,” she later said.
In 1943, Truus and Freddie were introduced to Hannie Schaft. As members of the Resistance Council, they were part of the armed resistance. Toward the end of the occupation, Hannie was arrested and executed by firing squad. Truus had to continue with a life “that would never be the same again.”
Truus Oversteegen dressed as a man and Hannie Schaft
As a communist, Truus was confronted with the repercussions of the Cold War fears in the postwar years. In 1982, she wrote the book “Not Then, Not Now, Never” about her resistance work. That same year, Queen Juliana unveiled Truus’s statue of Hannie in Kenaupark in Haarlem.
In memory of Hannie Schaft and all those who lost their lives in the resistance, Truus established the National Hannie Schaft Remembrance Foundation. The foundation’s objectives were clear from the outset: to fight fascism, racism, and discrimination. Freedom and equality, against exclusion, were her motto. Truus also initiated the establishment of a children’s home for disabled children in Soweto, South Africa.
Until mid-2011, Truus regularly stood in front of the class, tirelessly and combatively answering children’s questions. She was also a popular guest on television and radio. In 2008, the Resistance Museum in Amsterdam held an exhibition about the three women resistance fighters.
On April 15, 2014, she and her sister Freddie Dekker-Oversteegen received the Mobilization War Cross from Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
Wife and mother
After the war, Truus married Piet Menger, whom she met in the resistance. They had four children: Hannie, Martin, Katinka, and Peter. The children were raised with a great sense of humor, but also with a strong political awareness instilled in them from childhood.
The artist
Truus developed into a talented painter and later made a name for herself as a sculptor. During the occupation, she was already inspired by Mari Andriessen, with whom she spent a period in hiding. In 2010, she published the collection “Op het retinvlies van mijn denken” (On the retina of my thoughts), featuring her poems and sculptures.
Truus’s work has been exhibited at Slot Zeist and the Jan van der Togt Museum. Her work is about pride, pride, and inner strength. Mies Bouhuys says in the preface to the book “Truus Menger – beeldhouwster” by Peter de Rijcke: “Her work focuses on people who support each other and stay afloat in difficult circumstances.” And Jan Wolkers puts it succinctly: “The shrapnel is jumping off it.”
Her statue of Hannie Schaft was unveiled by Princess Juliana on May 3, 1982. Flowers are laid at the statue during the annual National Hannie Schaft Commemoration.
At the grand Hannie Schaft Commemoration in the St. Bavo Church in Haarlem on November 29, 2015—70 years later—she was one of the guests of honor.
We will miss Truus very much on our board and as a friend. We will do our utmost to continue the foundation’s activities in her spirit.
National Hannie Schaft Foundation
On behalf of the Board and staff
Jeroen Pliester, Chairman
The writer
Several of her books are available through this website. To view more information or to order, click on the title of the book in question and you will be taken to our webshop.
