BOON-SCHUURMAN
a family chronicle and photos
by Gerard Boon
After my mother, Wubbegie Boon-Schuurman, passed away I received her collection of photos with the intention of organizing them. With the help of my nephew, Bert Vermeulen, I've put some of these images on this site. Bert has also made the translation of the text from Dutch into English.
The launch of the Mitropa 1956
A large share of the thousands of photos that I've reviewed were made by John Vermeulen, my oldest sister Gretha's husband. My sisters and brothers, and especially Gretha helped me answer questions about who is in each photo and where and when they were taken. Jan Ottink, the son of Aunt Grie, my father's youngest sister assisted in documenting the family geneology.
For the captions and text I've made use of the essay that I wrote with the help of my father in 1979 about his life and work. I've also referred back to interviews I taped with my mother in 1990-1993.
The contents of this site and my additions to it will generally be in chronological order and will follow our family tree, starting with my father's parents and mother's parents, their brothers and sisters, their children and ships, the places they lived, their travels, their friends, and finally their grandchildren.