Gerrit van Praag, born on 8 June 1910 in Den Helder, was the eldest of the three children of the merchant Hijman van Praag and Elsje Oudkerk, who were married there on 19 April 1910. They then lived at Spoorgracht 46, but soon moved to Keizerstraat 76, where his sister Jogeva was born on 6 September 1913, followed by Emanuel on 19 January 1915.
Gerrit completed a 5-year HHS course in Den Helder (H…