(Breedenbroek, 1909)

Member of the 2nd Company DNB

Discharged as a soldier yet a member of the Interior Forces

Derk Bernard Migchelbrink was born on 17 November 1909 in Breedenbroek, Gendringen, the son of Derk Hendrik Migchelbrink and Antonia Hendrika Bussink. His father was a clog maker and he had a sister, Grada. In 1935, after six years of service, Derk was discharged as a soldier from the Army due to physical defects.

On 6 April 1939, he married Leis Houwers from ‘de Blaosbalg’ on the Terborgseweg, just outside Varsseveld. They moved into the neighbouring house and had no children. Derk worked in the shop of the Varsseveld Agricultural Cooperative (Landbouwcoöperatie). After his employer took over the Wisselink mill’s milling and bakery operations, Derk was promoted and became manager of the shop on the Heelweg near Varsseveld.

During the Second World War, they provided shelter to two people in hiding: barber Wim Dekkers and Willy Michel, a deserted German Jew.

Resistance and Air Raid Protection

Together with his brother-in-law Hein Helmink, Migchelbrink was affiliated with the Varsseveld Council of Resistance (Raad van Verzet). Additionally, he was active in the Varsseveld Air Raid Protection block squad. In this capacity, he monitored house blackouts, provided first aid during air raids, and performed firefighting duties. Being a member of the Air Raid Protection Service was advantageous, as identity papers allowed resistance members to be on the streets at night, which was forbidden for almost all other citizens.

In early September 1944, Derk and Leis’s house was requisitioned to accommodate an NSB (Dutch Nazi) family from Arnhem, after which the couple moved in with an aunt in Dinxperlo.

Dutch National Battalion

In October 1944, Migchelbrink joined the Interior Forces (Binnenlandse Strijdkrachten – BS). In early April 1945, he became a member of the 2nd Company of the Dutch National Battalion (DNB). On 5 May 1945, he signed the document confirming his continued service with the Interior Forces. His brother-in-law Hein Helmink (also married) joined as well, along with the former fugitives Dekkers and Michel. From the very first day, Migchelbrink was appointed ‘menagemeester’ (cook/catering manager). He received a driving permit for a Puch 125 cc motorcycle from the First Canadian Corps.

After the war

Following the disbandment of the DNB in July 1945, Migchelbrink enlisted in the Dutch army. He worked in the canteen of the barracks in Wezep, near Zwolle. On 11 January 1946, he went on indefinite leave, after which he resumed his life and work on the Heelweg near Varsseveld.

Derk Migchelbrink and Leis Houwers