Mini exhibition due to unique donation; four dresses can be seen together again 79 years after the liberation.

In the entrance hall of the Resistance Museum Amsterdam there is a small exhibition with four party dresses from one family. They were worn at a liberation party in 1945 in the Amsterdam Pijp neighborhood, as can be seen in a photo that exudes joy. The almost intact dresses were recently donated to the museum by two of the children in the photo.

Jessy Meijer-Costa, one of the donors, remembers it well: “There was a competition to see who had the most beautiful dress. Actually, Dieuwertje would win, but some people were bothered by the Soviet flag on the back of her dress.” That’s why Janny, with her dress thanking the Swedish Red Cross, took home the first prize. From left to right in the photo are Jessy (6), Wim (10) and Dieuwertje (10) Costa and their nieces Janny (9) and Betty (13) Leegwater.

End of a difficult time

The cheerful photo marks the end of a difficult time. Janny and Betty are not just visiting family to visit their nephew and nieces in Cornelis Trooststraat, but have been living with them for a year. Their father Cor and (Jewish) mother Beb are communist resistance members. In May 1944 they were arrested during a raid at their home in Amsterdam South. Cor’s sister Dieuwertje – a widow with three young children – does not hesitate for a moment and takes the sisters into her home. Janny and Betty are lovingly cared for there until their parents return from German camps.

It is also their aunt who – once the war is over – makes the festive clothes for the five children with her own hands. Wim’s trouser suit – decorated with ration coupons – has not been preserved, but the four dresses have stood the test of time. Jessy Meijer-Costa and Janny Schaperkotter-Leegwater – the only living children in the photo – donated them to the Resistance Museum earlier this year. There they can be seen together again 79 years later.

Resistance Museum Amsterdam, Plantage Kerklaan 61