Debora Gompers was a daughter of the diamond worker and prompter Mozes Levie Gompers and of Sara de Solla, both from Amsterdam. Debora was born too in Amsterdam, on 19 September 1867 in a family of in total seven children, namelly Rosetta, Rachel, Levie – also names Louis, Marianne, Elisabeth – also named Elise, Isaac and Debora self, all born in Amsterdam, but later often living in Antwerp,
Debora Gompers married in Amsterdam Gerson da Cunha on 22 February 1893, who was usually called Gerrit, a barber by profession who was born on 15 August 1861 in Amsterdam as son of barber Abraham Mozes da Cunha and Abigael Binger. When they married, Debora was 25 years old and Gerrit 31 year of age.
Gerrit da Cunha was born into a family of in total ten children and lived with his parents and siblings at different addresses in Amsterdam, but since December 1890, Gerrit lived on his own and independently at Nieuwe Achtergracht 19. Afterwards, he stayed for some time in Antwerp bur returned to Amsterdam on 2 Januaary 1893 to his former address.
After the weddingday in Februari 1893, Debora came living in with Gerrit and they had two children, namely Mozes on 17 October 1893 and on 21 October 1895 Abigael, both born in Amsterdam. However, Abigael died on 31 May `896, only 7 months old and she was interred in the Portuguese Jewish Cemetery Beth Haim in Ouderkerk aan den Amstel.
On 18 April 1899 Gerson (Gerrit) da Cunha passed away in Amsterdam and he too was interred in the Portuguese Israelitic Cemetery Beth Haim in Ouderkerk aan den Amstel. Later Debora Gompers remarried on 21 Sepember 1904 the 38-year old widower of Betje Koort, Israël Sealtiel, who was born on 25 August 1866 as son of David Sealtiel and Sara da Souse Pimentel. Israël Sealtiel then worked as a commercial traveller in cigarettes and Debora Gompers was a maternity nurse.
In 1906 the Sealtiel-Gompers couple and son Mozes da Cunha left for Antwerp, where they lived at the Lange Vanneaustraat 126 and in 1907 they lived in the Van Spangenstraat 2, also with some children from Israël’s first marriage with Betje Koort. The marriage of Israël Sealtiel and Debora Gompers did not last; on 19 June 1917 Debora left for Groningen, where she worked as a maternity nurse till 25 January 1917 and she lived at Kerklaan 103. Her spouse Israël Sealtiel still stayed in Antwerp, and in Amsterdam among others with his youngest daughter from his 1st marriage with Betje Koort, Rebecca Sealtiel, who was married to Adolf Hijman. In the end the divorce followed on 18 October 1918.
On 23 October 1917, Debora was unsubscribed from Groningen to Amsterdam, where she shortly stayed with her mother and widow of her father Levie Gompers, Sara de Solla. When Debora later lived at Zwanenburgerstraat 26, also her son Mozes with his family returned to Amsterdam and came living in with her. He has lived in Groningen at the same time like his mother and back in Amsterdam, they lived together at some more and different addresses in the city.
On 12 July 1928, Debora left for Antwerp again and lived there in the Carnotstraat 121 and also her son with his two daughters Bertha and Gerritdina followed her to the Carnotstraat in Antwerp. He had meanwhile divorced his Belgian wife in November 1927.
Two years later, on 21 July 1930, Debora Sealtiel-Gompers, her son Mozes da Cunha and his two daughters left Antwerp again for Holland and they arrived in Hilversum. In September 1935, Deobra moved to the François Valentijnstraat 91 in Den Haag, where her son Mozes had also moved with his daughters Bertha and Gerritdina. Both the daughters finally have succeeded in surviving the Holocaust, due to their mixed marriages.
In 1941 or 1942, Debora Gompers still ended up in a resthome in the Van den Boschstraat 111 in Den Haag. However, her official address still was François Valentijnstraat 91. On 19 February 1943 she was carried off to Westerbork and deported on 23 February to Auschwitz. There, upon arrival on 26 February 1943, she was immediately murdered in the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Sources include, the Dossiers of Foreigners of the City of Antwerp, nr. 62016 images 193-199 for Debora Gompers and nr.200878 images 566-572 for Mozes da Cunha; the City Archive of Amsterdam, discarded family registration cards for Mozes da Cunha 1810 – Abraham da Cunha 1826, Gerson da Cunha 1861 and Israël Sealtiel 1866; family registration cards Amsterdam for Israël Sealtiel 1866, Debora Gompers 1867 and Mozes da Cunha 1893; the Municipal Archive of Den Haag, registrations Population registers for Debora Gomeprs and Mozes da Cunha and the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration card for Debora Gompers.