Stumbling Stones Spiegelstraat 25a

These small, brass, memorial plaques (stolpersteine, struikelstenen, or stumbling stones) commemorate:

* Samuel Lipschits, born 1876, murdered 14 January 1943, Auschwitz.
* Rebecca Lipschits-van Beezemer, born 1867, murdered 14 January 1943, Auschwitz.

Background

Samuel Lipschits was one of 11 children in his family in Zutphen. He married Rebecca van Beezemer from Arnhem. She had two siblings. In 1898 Samuel and Rebecca had a daughter, who died shortly after birth. Testimony to Yad Vashem by a friend says the couple had two children. Little other information was found about the couple.

Given their ages, Samuel Lipschits (66) and Rebecca Lipschitz-van Beezemer (75) were probably murdered on arrival at Auschwitz.

Stolpersteine for them were installed on 5 July 2021.

Note that the spelling of Rebecca’s maiden name varies. Some sources, including Joods Monument and Stolpersteine Zutphen, omit the final R (van Beezeme). The R is included on her stolperstein and in Yad Vashem, which refers to the Nederlandse Israelische Gemeente's "List of Jews from Zutphen who perished, 1942-1945," and refers to testimony by a friend.

"Stolpersteine" is an art project for Europe by Gunter Demnig to commemorate victims of National Socialism (Nazism). Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) are small, 10x10cm brass plaques placed in the pavement in front of the last voluntary residence of (mostly Jewish) victims who were murdered by the Nazis. Each plaque is engraved victim’s with the name, date of birth, and place (mostly a concentration camp) and date of death. By doing this, Gunter Demnig gives an individual memorial to each victim. One stone, one name, one person. He cites the Talmud: "A human being is forgotten only when his or her name is forgotten."

Do you have more information about this location? Inform us!

Source

• Text: Anne Palmer
• Photos: Suzanne Matrosov-Vruggink
• Stolpersteine Zutphen
• Joods Monument
• Yad Vashem Central Database of Shoah Victims’ Names
• Geni.com
• Stolpersteine.eu