The story of Bella, Louis, Sajah, and Hindle
Speech by Baruch Ticho on September 23, 2026 in the townhall of Arnhem
Part 1: The story of Bella and the children
Slide 1: Thank you Burgemeester Marcouch, Hein-Willem Leeraar and the city of Arnhem for inviting us to share the account of the life of Sebilla Marcus. I am Baruch Ticho, grandson of Sebilla Marcus.
What we will tell you about today is a family history that is representative of the experiences of many who lived through World War II in Holland. It involves the victims - their terror, suffering and murder, The Dutch people - their heroism, sacrifice and human commitment and the Holocaust survivors and their families - their resilience, hardships and successes.
Slide 2: First I want to introduce you to Louis Swartenberg and Bella Swartenberg-Marcus, my grandparents. They were married in 1923 and had many happy years together, One of their favorite places to spend time was Scheveningen.
Slide 3: They had two daughters, Hindle, the older and Sarah (Sayah), my mother, the younger. When the war broke out they were living in Arnhem, and the family hoped to escape to England. They relocated to Scheveningen for a short time, but because of the heavy German military presence, they had no choice but to return to their home in Arnhem. There, daily life rapidly became increasingly dangerous. By March 1942, Louis and Bella decided that their daughters had to be forced into hiding to have any hope of survival.
After some detours, Sajah and Hindle found refuge with Herman and Dina van Dijk in Zwolle, who literally risked their own lives to protect and hide others. For nearly three years, from 1942 to 1945 the Swartenberg sisters lived in hiding and in constant fear, dependent on the courage of others. This secret hiding meant living on a razor’s edge. Small mistakes could have major consequences. Like that time Dina hung the girls' clothes on the clothesline and received comments about it, because the couple had no children of their own.
Slide 4: Imagine being a teenager and needing to stay silent in order to survive. Hidden in a dark attic, Hindle and Sajah communicated by tapping Morse code with knitting needles, turning fear into connection.
Let me take you back to a terrifying episode in 1942. Outside on the street, the girls heard the sound of cars arriving. Men shouting. Banging on doors. Heavy boots pounding the sidewalk. Sajah (then 15 years old) and Hindle (17 years old) know what that means. They rush to the attic and squeeze into their hiding places. They hold their breath and do not make a sound. When the German soldiers raided the house they found one of the girl’s diary which had been forgotten on the kitchen table. A violent interrogation of the van Dijks followed and it nearly cost the couple their lives. But they survived.
Slide 5: During the years in hiding, Sajah and Hindle kept going with a cherished possession: a wooden drawing box (teekendoos). Sajah took this box everywhere. On the inside of the lid, all the addresses where Sajah once stayed are listed, including Arnhem, and the hiding address in Zwolle. Creativity became the girls’ refuge. Through drawings and stories, they preserved hope when so much else had been taken away. The drawing box remains with our family and is here today, a quiet witness to both suffering and survival.
Slide 6: Let me now take you to Arnhem, Bosboomstraat 6. Louis and Bella remain at home. I cannot begin to imagine how difficult, painful and terrifying this time was living every day wondering whether they would ever see their daughters again.
In the winter of 1942, Louis is bedridden from tuberculosis. Then the doorbell rings, and two German soldiers demand entry to the house. Bella opens the door and reacts as calmly as possible. "My husband is in bed with tuberculosis," she says. This is incredibly effective. Terrified of infection, the soldiers recoil. They quickly ask for the doctor's name and leave to check if Louis is truly ill. The couple knows enough and does not waste a second. Louis jumps out of bed, pulls his coat over his pajamas, grabs the small prepared suitcase, and flees through the back door. Bella snatches her own suitcase, and disappears through the front door. Bella and Louis follow a preset plan and travel separately to Zwolle. Taking the train is too risky. They travel by hitchhiking and, upon arriving in Zwolle, are brought to a temporary shelter by their friend Lisle.
Slide 7: A month later Lisle organizes for Louis and Bella to visit Hindle and Sajah at the Van Dijk home. The family spoke briefly then shared a short embrace, unaware that it would be their final goodbye to Bella. That moment has no photo but it has echoed through generations.
After that the resistance hides Louis in a sanatorium. There he remains successfully hidden until the end of the war. Bella could have gone into hiding as a nurse in that same sanatorium but she refuses. Perhaps she feared being discovered at the same time as Louis? In any case, she consciously chooses not to stay together, and so their paths diverge. Bella goes into hiding as a teacher in an orphanage. In late 1943, she is in the vicinity of Hilversum and Laren. Then tragedy strikes. She is betrayed. The Feldgendarmerie picks her up from her hiding address.
Slide 8: It is November 15, 1943. Bella is transferred to the police in Hilversum. The administration starts immediately. Officers type up a police card. Bella gets a large, red letter 'S' on her card. Punishment! Her crime? Changing residence without a permit. Commonly referred to simply as "hiding." The door of cell A slams shut behind her. On November 25, 1943, Bella is moved to transit camp Westerbork. The letter 'S' seals her fate: she ends up directly in the infamous penal barracks 67. Two months follow, of surviving in bitter cold and fear. On January 25, 1944, a train takes Bella to Auschwitz and on January 28, 1944, she was murdered in the gas chambers there. Bella was forty-five years old.
Part 2: The courage of the Dutch people
This story contains cowardly betrayal. Bella was ruthlessly subjected to it. Yet this story is not only about loss. It is also about moral courage. The survival of Louis, Hindle, and Sajah was made possible by extraordinary fellow Dutch citizens who chose humanity over fear.
Slide 9: Herman and Dina van Dijk risked their own lives daily for years to save Jewish fellow human beings, including Sajah and Hindle. They did not see themselves as heroes. They simply believed helping others was the right thing to do.
Slide 10: Their fabulous courage and deep compassion was recognized. In 1993 Yad Vashem in Jerusalem honored Herman (and Dina posthumously) with the prestigious title “Righteous Among the Nations.” Their names are forever engraved on the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous. This international recognition reflects a beautiful, timeless conviction: “whoever saves one life, it is as if he had saved an entire universe.”
Slide 11: Near the end of the Second World War, my mother and aunt were moved from the van Dijk house to the home of Nico and Atie Noordhof who bravely sheltered Jewish people in hiding in their house at P.C. Hooftstraat 18 in Zwolle. When Zwolle was liberated on 14 April 1945, it was revealed that fourteen Jewish people had been hiding at the address and they are shown here. A plaque of recognition was put on the house and In 1999, Nico and Atie Noordhof were posthumously awarded the Yad Vashem distinction for their courageous aid.
Part 3: Impact on the family
Is the story of my family, of my grandmother Bella, unique? No, unfortunately not. Over 100,000 Dutch Jews had the same tragic deadly fate. Those who returned often received no clarity about what had happened to their loved ones. Entire families were wiped out in silence.
Slide 12: Then another silence set in. For years and years, the wartime past remained undiscussed within many families. And children rarely heard what the older generation had truly experienced. Despite all good intention of being protective, this persistent silence had a massive impact on these children.
The Holocaust left deep emotional and psychological scars that continue to resonate for generations through what we now recognize as intergenerational trauma. Survivors carry memories of loss, displacement, and persecution with them for a lifetime. Even in families where painful memories were rarely spoken aloud, the impact remained palpable through a heightened awareness of injustice, vulnerability, resilience, and human dignity.
Slide 13: The Holocaust left deep wounds, but it did not define the future of our family. Many Marcus family descendants devoted their lives to healing, teaching, research, music and public service, often focused on underserved and vulnerable communities.
Lex Marcus, Ernst Marcus, and Sajah all chose medicine after the war and became doctors. In doing so, they continued a family tradition that had existed in earlier centuries as well. Many of their children also entered medicine, driven by the conviction that caring for others is a moral responsibility—a way to affirm life in the face of historical suffering.
Slide 14: In addition Hindle later authored one of the most extensive publications on the history of Jewish physicians in the Netherlands.
In different ways, our family has transformed loss into purpose and honored a deeply rooted Dutch ethos of social responsibility and collective betterment. This demonstrates how the descendants of Holocaust survivors connect the memory of suffering with an unwavering commitment to improving the lives of others.
Part 4: Why we are here today
Slide 15: Today, September 23, 2026, we gather here together in Arnhem not only to remember how Bella died, but to remember how she lived. The Stolperstein restores her name to her beloved community and reconnects future generations to a life that the Nazis tried to erase.
For us, placing a Stolpersteine means honoring our family history. that has Dutch roots dating back to the seventeenth century.,
With a Stolpersteine, we commemorate Sebilla Henderika Swartenberg-Marcus. Her senseless death was a painful, irreparable loss to her husband, children, brothers, sister, and grandchildren. Today, for the grandmother who we never met we officially bring her name back into the community where she once lived as a free person. This monument is a lasting tribute to her memory and humanity. And more broadly, this stone serves as an enduring warning against the horrific consequences of oppression, intolerance, and antisemitism. Especially at a time when antisemitism is rising around the world again.
Slide 16: May this Stolpersteine be a way to keep the consequences of war visible in everyday life. May it invite future generations to reflect, remember, and take moral responsibility.
Slide 17: Now I would like all my family members present today to stand up.
Today, more than fifty descendants of Bella and her brother Bram stand together because Bella's story did not end in Auschwitz. Her legacy lives on through her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren who will carry her memory forward. We stand for Bella, for all those who were lost, and for the values of humanity, courage, and respect that must never be forgotten
Editor's note
See also Bella's personal page on this site: Joods Monument Arnhem - Namen - Meer
The story of Bella, Louis, Sajah, and Hindle
Speech by Baruch Ticho on September 23, 2026 in the townhall of Arnhem
Part 1: The story of Bella and the children
Slide 1: Thank you Burgemeester Marcouch, Hein-Willem Leeraar and the city of Arnhem for inviting us to share the account of the life of Sebilla Marcus. I am Baruch Ticho, grandson of Sebilla Marcus.
What we will tell you about today is a family history that is representative of the experiences of many who lived through World War II in Holland. It involves the victims - their terror, suffering and murder, The Dutch people - their heroism, sacrifice and human commitment and the Holocaust survivors and their families - their resilience, hardships and successes.
Slide 2: First I want to introduce you to Louis Swartenberg and Bella Swartenberg-Marcus, my grandparents. They were married in 1923 and had many happy years together, One of their favorite places to spend time was Scheveningen.
Slide 3: They had two daughters, Hindle, the older and Sarah (Sayah), my mother, the younger. When the war broke out they were living in Arnhem, and the family hoped to escape to England. They relocated to Scheveningen for a short time, but because of the heavy German military presence, they had no choice but to return to their home in Arnhem. There, daily life rapidly became increasingly dangerous. By March 1942, Louis and Bella decided that their daughters had to be forced into hiding to have any hope of survival.
After some detours, Sajah and Hindle found refuge with Herman and Dina van Dijk in Zwolle, who literally risked their own lives to protect and hide others. For nearly three years, from 1942 to 1945 the Swartenberg sisters lived in hiding and in constant fear, dependent on the courage of others. This secret hiding meant living on a razor’s edge. Small mistakes could have major consequences. Like that time Dina hung the girls' clothes on the clothesline and received comments about it, because the couple had no children of their own.
Slide 4: Imagine being a teenager and needing to stay silent in order to survive. Hidden in a dark attic, Hindle and Sajah communicated by tapping Morse code with knitting needles, turning fear into connection.
Let me take you back to a terrifying episode in 1942. Outside on the street, the girls heard the sound of cars arriving. Men shouting. Banging on doors. Heavy boots pounding the sidewalk. Sajah (then 15 years old) and Hindle (17 years old) know what that means. They rush to the attic and squeeze into their hiding places. They hold their breath and do not make a sound. When the German soldiers raided the house they found one of the girl’s diary which had been forgotten on the kitchen table. A violent interrogation of the van Dijks followed and it nearly cost the couple their lives. But they survived.
Slide 5: During the years in hiding, Sajah and Hindle kept going with a cherished possession: a wooden drawing box (teekendoos). Sajah took this box everywhere. On the inside of the lid, all the addresses where Sajah once stayed are listed, including Arnhem, and the hiding address in Zwolle. Creativity became the girls’ refuge. Through drawings and stories, they preserved hope when so much else had been taken away. The drawing box remains with our family and is here today, a quiet witness to both suffering and survival.
Slide 6: Let me now take you to Arnhem, Bosboomstraat 6. Louis and Bella remain at home. I cannot begin to imagine how difficult, painful and terrifying this time was living every day wondering whether they would ever see their daughters again.
In the winter of 1942, Louis is bedridden from tuberculosis. Then the doorbell rings, and two German soldiers demand entry to the house. Bella opens the door and reacts as calmly as possible. "My husband is in bed with tuberculosis," she says. This is incredibly effective. Terrified of infection, the soldiers recoil. They quickly ask for the doctor's name and leave to check if Louis is truly ill. The couple knows enough and does not waste a second. Louis jumps out of bed, pulls his coat over his pajamas, grabs the small prepared suitcase, and flees through the back door. Bella snatches her own suitcase, and disappears through the front door. Bella and Louis follow a preset plan and travel separately to Zwolle. Taking the train is too risky. They travel by hitchhiking and, upon arriving in Zwolle, are brought to a temporary shelter by their friend Lisle.
Slide 7: A month later Lisle organizes for Louis and Bella to visit Hindle and Sajah at the Van Dijk home. The family spoke briefly then shared a short embrace, unaware that it would be their final goodbye to Bella. That moment has no photo but it has echoed through generations.
After that the resistance hides Louis in a sanatorium. There he remains successfully hidden until the end of the war. Bella could have gone into hiding as a nurse in that same sanatorium but she refuses. Perhaps she feared being discovered at the same time as Louis? In any case, she consciously chooses not to stay together, and so their paths diverge. Bella goes into hiding as a teacher in an orphanage. In late 1943, she is in the vicinity of Hilversum and Laren. Then tragedy strikes. She is betrayed. The Feldgendarmerie picks her up from her hiding address.
Slide 8: It is November 15, 1943. Bella is transferred to the police in Hilversum. The administration starts immediately. Officers type up a police card. Bella gets a large, red letter 'S' on her card. Punishment! Her crime? Changing residence without a permit. Commonly referred to simply as "hiding." The door of cell A slams shut behind her. On November 25, 1943, Bella is moved to transit camp Westerbork. The letter 'S' seals her fate: she ends up directly in the infamous penal barracks 67. Two months follow, of surviving in bitter cold and fear. On January 25, 1944, a train takes Bella to Auschwitz and on January 28, 1944, she was murdered in the gas chambers there. Bella was forty-five years old.
Part 2: The courage of the Dutch people
This story contains cowardly betrayal. Bella was ruthlessly subjected to it. Yet this story is not only about loss. It is also about moral courage. The survival of Louis, Hindle, and Sajah was made possible by extraordinary fellow Dutch citizens who chose humanity over fear.
Slide 9: Herman and Dina van Dijk risked their own lives daily for years to save Jewish fellow human beings, including Sajah and Hindle. They did not see themselves as heroes. They simply believed helping others was the right thing to do.
Slide 10: Their fabulous courage and deep compassion was recognized. In 1993 Yad Vashem in Jerusalem honored Herman (and Dina posthumously) with the prestigious title “Righteous Among the Nations.” Their names are forever engraved on the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous. This international recognition reflects a beautiful, timeless conviction: “whoever saves one life, it is as if he had saved an entire universe.”
Slide 11: Near the end of the Second World War, my mother and aunt were moved from the van Dijk house to the home of Nico and Atie Noordhof who bravely sheltered Jewish people in hiding in their house at P.C. Hooftstraat 18 in Zwolle. When Zwolle was liberated on 14 April 1945, it was revealed that fourteen Jewish people had been hiding at the address and they are shown here. A plaque of recognition was put on the house and In 1999, Nico and Atie Noordhof were posthumously awarded the Yad Vashem distinction for their courageous aid.
Part 3: Impact on the family
Is the story of my family, of my grandmother Bella, unique? No, unfortunately not. Over 100,000 Dutch Jews had the same tragic deadly fate. Those who returned often received no clarity about what had happened to their loved ones. Entire families were wiped out in silence.
Slide 12: Then another silence set in. For years and years, the wartime past remained undiscussed within many families. And children rarely heard what the older generation had truly experienced. Despite all good intention of being protective, this persistent silence had a massive impact on these children.
The Holocaust left deep emotional and psychological scars that continue to resonate for generations through what we now recognize as intergenerational trauma. Survivors carry memories of loss, displacement, and persecution with them for a lifetime. Even in families where painful memories were rarely spoken aloud, the impact remained palpable through a heightened awareness of injustice, vulnerability, resilience, and human dignity.
Slide 13: The Holocaust left deep wounds, but it did not define the future of our family. Many Marcus family descendants devoted their lives to healing, teaching, research, music and public service, often focused on underserved and vulnerable communities.
Lex Marcus, Ernst Marcus, and Sajah all chose medicine after the war and became doctors. In doing so, they continued a family tradition that had existed in earlier centuries as well. Many of their children also entered medicine, driven by the conviction that caring for others is a moral responsibility—a way to affirm life in the face of historical suffering.
Slide 14: In addition Hindle later authored one of the most extensive publications on the history of Jewish physicians in the Netherlands.
In different ways, our family has transformed loss into purpose and honored a deeply rooted Dutch ethos of social responsibility and collective betterment. This demonstrates how the descendants of Holocaust survivors connect the memory of suffering with an unwavering commitment to improving the lives of others.
Part 4: Why we are here today
Slide 15: Today, September 23, 2026, we gather here together in Arnhem not only to remember how Bella died, but to remember how she lived. The Stolperstein restores her name to her beloved community and reconnects future generations to a life that the Nazis tried to erase.
For us, placing a Stolpersteine means honoring our family history. that has Dutch roots dating back to the seventeenth century.,
With a Stolpersteine, we commemorate Sebilla Henderika Swartenberg-Marcus. Her senseless death was a painful, irreparable loss to her husband, children, brothers, sister, and grandchildren. Today, for the grandmother who we never met we officially bring her name back into the community where she once lived as a free person. This monument is a lasting tribute to her memory and humanity. And more broadly, this stone serves as an enduring warning against the horrific consequences of oppression, intolerance, and antisemitism. Especially at a time when antisemitism is rising around the world again.
Slide 16: May this Stolpersteine be a way to keep the consequences of war visible in everyday life. May it invite future generations to reflect, remember, and take moral responsibility.
Slide 17: Now I would like all my family members present today to stand up.
Today, more than fifty descendants of Bella and her brother Bram stand together because Bella's story did not end in Auschwitz. Her legacy lives on through her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren who will carry her memory forward. We stand for Bella, for all those who were lost, and for the values of humanity, courage, and respect that must never be forgotten
Editor's note
See also Bella's personal page on this site: Joods Monument Arnhem - Namen - Meer