Levie Augurk was a son of Leendert Augurk and his first wife Rosa Bernhard. He was born in Amsterdam on 24 March 1887 and had an elder sister Rika, who was married to Salomon Porcelijn and also a younger sister Maria, who got married to Isaac Wagenhuis. His mother Rosa Bernhard however died in childbirth on 7 January 1889, giving birth to her 3rd child who was born on 3 January. One year later, his father remarried Katharina van Thijn, after which Levie had two more half brothers: Jacob in 1891 and David in 1893.
Levie Augurk married Elisabeth Koopman in Amsterdam on 4 July 1923, a daughter of Joël Koopman and Leentje Cohen. The couple had three children, namely Jozeph in 1924, Roza in 1927 and Lea in 1928. Levie Augurk earned his living as a bicycle guard at a cinema. With his family he lived at Rapenburg 15 2nd floor in the old city centre of Amsterdam.
After Levie and Elisabeth were married in 1923, they lived at the Korte Dijkstraat 8 but moved to Meerhuizenplein 20, Meerhuizenstraat 17 and after again a few relocations, they came to live at Rapenburg 15 2nd floor on 13 July 1935, where Levie Augurk however suddenly passed away on 25 December 1940.
Levie’s widow, Elisabeth Koopman and her children Roza and Lea were summoned to report in Westerbork on 26 November 1942. On 4 December they were put on transport to Auschwitz and upon arrival there on 7 December 1942, they were immediately gassed in the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Son Jozeph on the other hand - who was working in a bicycle storage, perhaps with his father - was to be transported on 31 July 1942 for the so-called “Arbeitseinsatz” in Germany; he must have received a summons to do so before, but on 25 July 1942 he was given a postponement of deportation. It is not known why he obtained this postponement.
Jozeph Augurk stayed as of 22 January 1943 at Plantage Parklaan 15 hs, where the A.C. Wertheimhuis was located, which was an annex of “Het Apeldoornsche Bosch”, the Central Israëlitic Psychiatric Hospital in Apeldoorn and where he was a resident according to the residence card Plantage Parklaan 15 of Amsterdam. The property was looted on 3 February 1943, after which Jozeph ended up at Nieuwe Herengracht 137 on 23 February 1943. In the end he was deported on 4 May 1943 from Westerbork to Sobibor and immediately murdered in the gas chambers upon arrival there on 7 May 1943.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, family registration card of Levie Augurk; archive cards of Levie Augurk, Elisabeth Koopman and Jozeph Augurk; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Elisabeth Augurk-Koopman, Jozeph Augurk, Lea Augurk and Roza Augurk and the website joodsamsterdam.nl/a.c.wertheimhuis (dutch language only).