Digital exhibition: 'Wy kinne der noch wol ien by ha' (we can still have someone with us)

Would I give my child to a stranger? Would I take a child into my family at the risk of my life? Jewish families and Frisian foster families were confronted with these dilemmas in World War II. During the occupation, hundreds of Jewish children were smuggled to Fryslân to go into hiding. In the digital exhibition 'Wy kinne der geen wol ien by ha', which can be seen from 15 April on the Tresoar website, the stories of eighteen of these children and their Frisian helpers are told. In addition, smuggling child Fred van Vliet tells his impressive story in a new podcast.

Last year it was 75 years ago that the Netherlands was liberated, an anniversary year that would be celebrated in a grand manner. Unfortunately, the corona virus threw a spanner in the works. Tresoar also had to close its doors earlier, which meant that the physical exhibition 'Wy kinne der geen wol ien by ha' was only shown for a short time. From April 15, 2021, 75 + 1 years after the liberation of Friesland, Tresoar would like to to offer people the opportunity to visit the exhibition with the digital exhibition 'Wy kinne der geen wol ien by ha'. In this exhibition, you walk through a virtual space where you can click on the portraits of the children who were smuggled to read their stories. You can also listen to a special podcast.

In the podcast, a new part of the exhibition, Fred van Vliet tells his story. Fred van Vliet was born in Amsterdam in 1942. His mother made the heartbreaking but life-saving decision to let Fred go into hiding. As a baby, he was smuggled to Friesland by the brave resistance heroine Iet van Dijk and placed with Marten and Helene van Vliet, in Sneek. In the podcast, made by Mijn Oerverhaal (my primal story), Fred van Vliet tells more about the journey he made and its impact on his later life.

The digital exhibition can be viewed at: http://virtueletour.tresoar.nl/