Gerrit Poppegaai was a son of Joseph Poppegaai and Aaltje Schellevis. He was born on 9 April 1884 in Amsterdam and earned his living as cigar maker. After he was married in Amsterdam to Magdalena van Geldere on 18 December 1913, he became a cigar manufactuer en shop keeper in tobacco articles and had his business in the Albert Cuypstraat 149.
His wife, Magdalena van Geodere was born in Doesburg on 13 May 1890 as a daughter of Saul van Geldere and Sientje Fransman. The couple had two daughters, namely Alida in 1915 and Gesina in 1918. Only Gesina has survived the Shoah.
After being arrested, (reason unknown), Gerrit Poppegaai was sent to the concentration camp Mauthausen and arrived there on 4 July 1942. He received prison-number 10928 and had to stay in Block 5. The conditions there must have been inhumane for him as already 5 days later, on 9 July 1942 Gerrit Poppegaai has chosen to take his own life by electrocution at the high voltage charged fence (Freitod durch Elektro-Zaun).
His wife Magdalena van Geldere was carried off to Westerbork on 20 April 1943 where she had to stay in barrack 57. On 27 April she was put on transport to Sobibor where upon arrival there, she was immediately murdered in the gas chambers.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, archive cards of Gerrit Poppegaai and Magdalena van Geldere; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Gerrit Poppegaai and Magdalena Poppegaai-van Geldere; website ITS Arolson, Todsfallaufnahme (death certificate) of Gerrit Poppegaain, made out 30 July 1942 in Mauthausen and his Todesmeldung (Reporting of death)of 9 July 1942 from Mauthausen.