Johan Hendrik Weidner (French: Jean Henri - English: John Henry) (October 22, 1912, Brussels, Belgium - May 21, 1994, Monterey Park, California, United States) was a highly decorated hero of World War II. October 22 is the 295th day of the year (296th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 70 days remaining. ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday. ... For other uses, see Brussels (disambiguation). ... May 21 is the 141st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (142nd in leap years). ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... Monterey Park is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. ... Combatants Allied Powers Axis Powers Commanders {{{commander1}}} {{{commander2}}} Strength {{{strength1}}} {{{strength2}}} Casualties 17 million military deaths 7 million military deaths World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a mid-20th century conflict that engulfed much of the globe and is accepted as the largest and deadliest...

Johan Weidner, born to Dutch parents, grew up in Collonges, France in the Ain département near the Swiss border where his father served as the minister of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Following his education at French public schools, he studied at the Seventh-day Adventist Seminary in Collonges, and then pursued a degree in law and in business at the University of Geneva and at the Sorbonne in Paris, France. Collonges is the name of several places: France Collonges is the name or part of the name of several communes in France: Collonges, in the Ain département Collonges-au-Mont-dOr, in the Rhône département Collonges_la_Rouge, in the Corrèze département Collonges_lès_Bévy, in the Côte-dOr département Collonges-lès... Ain is a département named after the Ain River on the eastern edge of France bordering Switzerland. ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ... This article contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ... The University of Geneva (Université de Genève) is one of the oldest universities in the world. ... The Sorbonne, Paris, in a 17th century engraving The Sorbonne today, from the same point of view The Sorbonne is frequently used in ordinary parlance as synonymous with the faculty of theology of Paris or the University of Paris in its entirety. ... The Eiffel Tower has become the symbol of Paris throughout the world. ...

In 1935, he established a textile import/export business in Paris, where he was living at the outbreak of World War II. With the subsequent German occupation of France he went south to the city of Lyon where he helped organize the "Dutch-Paris" underground network to aid anyone who needed to escape from the Nazis. In Paris, his sister Gabrielle Weidner and other volunteers helped coordinate escapes. As one of the significant contributors to French Resistance, Weidner's escape network would be responsible for the rescue of at least 1,000 persons, including 800 Jews and more than 100 downed Allied airmen. City motto: Avant, avant, Lion le melhor. ... The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... Gabrielle Weidner (August 17, 1914, Brussels, Belgium – February 17, 1945, Königsberg, Germany) was a heroine of World War II. The child of Dutch parents, she grew up in Collonges, France in the Ain département, near the Swiss border where her father served as the minister of the Seventh... The French Resistance is the name used for resistance movements that fought military occupation of France by Nazi Germany and the Vichy France undemocratic regime during World War II after the government and the high command of France surrendered in 1940. ... In general, allies are people or groups that have joined an alliance and are working together to achieve some common purpose. ...

In early 1943 he was arrested and brutally interrogated by the Gestapo but revealed nothing and was eventually released. However, another member of his group was taken by the Gestapo and under torture revealed the names of many key members of the Underground including Weidner's sister. As a result, a large number of the groups members were arrested. Gabrielle Weidner was detained by the Gestapo in Paris and after being interrogated and viciously tortured, she was shipped to Ravensbrück concentration camp in Germany where she suffered horribly and died of malnutrition. The Deaths Head emblem similar to Skull and crossbones, often used as the insignia of the Gestapo The â–¶(?) (acronym of Geheime Staatspolizei; secret state police) was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. ... View of the barracks at Ravensbrück Ravensbrück was a German concentration camp located 90 km north of Berlin. ...

Johan Weidner was arrested by the Germans a second time and was placed on a train with other prisoners for shipping to a concentration camp to be used as slave labor. However, during the trip, he jumped off the train and made his way to the safety of neutral Switzerland. From there he escaped to England and was part of the Dutch army formed in Britain and fought with that unit during the final months of the war. After the war, he served in the Dutch diplomatic service. In 1955 he emigrated to the United States, eventually settling in California where he operated a chain of health food stores. A concentration camp is a large detention center created for political opponents, aliens, specific ethnic or religious groups, civilians of a critical war-zone, or other groups of people, often during a war. ...

For his War efforts, Johan Weidner was awarded the United States Medal of Freedom, made a member of the Order of the British Empire, the Dutch Order of Orange Nassau and the Dutch Medal of Resistance. The government of France honored him with the Croix de Guerre and Medaille de la Resistance, and the Légion d'honneur. The government of Belgium made him an Officer of The Order of King Leopold. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award in the United States. ... Commanders Badge of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V. The Order includes five classes in civil and military divisions, in decreasing order of seniority: Knight or Dame Grand... The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of both Belgium and France which was first created in 1915. ... The French Resistance Medal was awarded by General Charles de Gaulle to recognize the remarkable acts of faith and of courage that, in France, in the empire and abroad, have contributed to the resistance of the French people against the enemy and against its accomplices since June 18 1940. The... Knights badge of the Legion of Honour The Légion dhonneur (Legion of Honor (AmE) or Legion of Honour (ComE)) is an Order of Chivalry first established by Napoléon Bonaparte, First Consul of the French Republic, on May 19, 1802. ...

At the 1993 opening of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. he was one of seven persons chosen to light candles recognizing the rescuers. The government of Israel honored Weidner as part of the gentiles designated as Righteous Among the Nations at Israel's national Holocaust Memorial, Yad Vashem where a grove of trees was planted in his name on the Hill of Remembrance along the Avenue of the Righteous. Also in 1993, the Atlantic Union College in South Lancaster, Massachusetts, established "The John Henry Weidner Center" for the Cultivation of the Altruistic Spirit. 1993 (MCMXCIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Exterior of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is a national institution located adjacent to The National Mall in Washington, DC, dedicated to documenting, studying, and interpreting the history of the Holocaust. ... Washington, D.C. is the capital city of the United States of America. ... The word Gentile (from the Latin gentilis, a translation of the Hebrew Nochri/נכרי) has several meanings. ... After World War II, the term Righteous Among the Nations (Hebrew language: חסידי אומות העולם, transliterated Khasidei Umot HaOlam) has been used to describe non-Jews who behaved heroically during the Holocaust in order to save Jews from the Nazi-instigated genocide. ... Yad Vashem memorial sculpture Yad Vashem (יד ושם) is Israels official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust established in 1953 through the Memorial Law passed by the Knesset, Israels parliament. ... South Lancaster is a census-designated place and village located in the town of Lancaster in Worcester County, Massachusetts. ...