Benders was born on July 1, 1907 in
Bloemendaal. He was a Dutch teacher at the
Amsterdams Lyceum. He and his wife sheltered several Jews in their home. In 1943, however, they were betrayed by a neighbor and Johan was arrested by the
Gestapo. In prison, he was tortured. Johan Benders had tried to kill himself twice though survived. On 6 April he jumped from the third floor of the prison in which he was held, to avoid giving information under torture. Johan and Gerritdina took in Rosalie and Katie Wijnberg,
Lore Polak, another Jewish girl, and
Jan Doedens. A cellmate, who worked in the prison administration, later discovered that Johan was not only suspected of helping Jews, but also of involvement in the attack on the
population register in
Amsterdam. == Legacy ==