Corrie Ten Boom

Corrie Ten Boom was a Dutch Christian author, Holocaust survivor, and outspoken advocate for the abolition of Apartheid. Born in Haarlem, Netherlands, on April 15, 1892, she was the youngest of four children. As a child she was fascinated by machinery and the inner workings of clocks and watches, which she would later cite as the influence which led her to champion human rights and her faith in God.

Corrie's father was a jeweller and watchmaker and insisted each of his four children learn the trade and take part in his watch shop business. Corrie was a natural, often taking on the most technical and intricate assignments. She was also a talented and creative writer and in her later years of high school began writing a story and publishing it in installments in a children's magazine.

At twenty-five, Corrie found employment in World War I as a nurse in the Dutch Red Cross, caring for wounded and ill soldiers in Germany. After the war, she returned home and worked briefly at her father's watch shop before writing and publishing a collection of stories in 1919 entitled In the Barn, With God.

Due to the rise of anti-Semitism in the Netherlands during World War II, Corrie and her family decided to help hide Jews in their home, known as Beje. Corrie soon joined the Dutch resistance and, in addition to assisting and hiding those seeking refuge, aided in the production of false identity cards and passports. Corrie was eventually arrested and along with her father, other family members, and friends was sent to a concentration camp. Her father and sister, Betsie, both perished in the camp, but Corrie was released shortly after her arrival due to a clerical error.

Following her release, Corrie wrote her memoir, titled The Hiding Place, in which she recounted her experience in the concentration camp and detailed the bravery and strength of those she encountered. The book was published in 1971 and became a bestseller, quickly becoming one of the most influential holocaust-related works of the time.

Corrie's faith was a dominant theme throughout her writings, and she was a known speaker and advocate in churches across the Netherlands and had a considerable impact on the Protestant Dutch Reformed Church. In 1974, Corrie Ten Boom founded the Corrie Ten Boom House in her hometown of Haarlem as a living monument to her faith and to those she encountered in the concentration camps.

Throughout the seventies, Corrie continued to write and speak about her experiences during the war, including several autobiographical works such as Tramp for the Lord (1976) and Her Final Journey (1981). She dedicated the remainder of her life to issues of justice and human rights, particularly in the Netherlands and South Africa. In 1983, Corrie received a standing ovation from the entire house when she spoke before the Dutch Parliament. Two years later, in 1985, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by US President Ronald Reagan for her outstanding contributions to the civil rights struggle.

Corrie Ten Boom passed away on April 15, 1983, at the age of ninety-one. Her influence and legacy live on in her hundreds of books, speeches, and other works. She was an inspiring figure in the civil rights movement and the fight against racial and religious injustice, a passionate advocate for the faith that sustained her throughout her life, and a humanitarian who dedicated her whole life to serving others.