Four Pin Cushions

 

Ida and Louise Cook were spinsters in their 30’s living with Mum and Dad. One wrote romance novels; the other was a secretary. They sewed their own clothes and loved German opera. They loved it so much they’d spend weekends going back and forth between London and Germany. No one paid much attention to them, or to the fact they’d come home wearing jewels and furs. In the 1930’s. The sisters entered and exited through different checkpoints, so no one would notice. If anyone saw their handbags were full of valuables, they’d say, “It’s not safe to leave them home!” Ida and Louise were collecting and transporting precious things for German refugees. They found people to house them, and assembled papers for their passage. They used their own money, so the refugees could sell their furs and jewels later for cash to get settled. They directly rescued 29 people from the Nazi regime. And they were never caught.