Eliezer and Rosalie-Shoshanah Yacqont and their sons, Ephraim-Ze'ev (b. 1930) and Aryeh (b. 1931), lived in Antwerp, Belgium, next-door to Eliezer's parents, Israel and Bertha. Eliezer was a travelling salesman for his father's furniture factory. The Zionistic family led an observant Jewish lifestyle. Ephraim studied at the "Tachkimoni" school, and spoke fluent Hebrew. Shoshanah's parents, Shmuel and Anna Mo'ed, immigrated to Eretz Israel (Mandatory Palestine) in 1937.
Following the German invasion of Belgium, Eliezer transported many members of his extended family by car to Switzerland, via France. He returned to Brussels, took his parents, wife and children, and returned to the Swiss border, but the Swiss refused them entry and the family travelled to Paris.
In the fall of 1942, the Yacqont family was arrested in France. Israel and Bertha were sent to the Drancy camp, and in October 1942, they were deported to their deaths in Auschwitz. Eliezer, Shoshanah and the boys returned to Belgium and lived in Brussels. Eliezer was arrested by the Germans and sent to the Malines (Mechelen) transit camp. Shoshanah and the boys remained in their apartment in Brussels, together with Yitzhak Mo'ed, son of Henri-Haim, Shoshana's brother. Henri and his wife Natalie had fled to France with their son Yitzhak, but were caught and sent to Auschwitz in September 1942. Yitzhak was sent to an orphanage in Paris, and later brought to his Aunt Shoshanah in Brussels.
With the assistance of the Belgian underground, Shoshana, her sons and her nephew Yitzhak found refuge with the Deaubois family, staunch Catholics from the village of Genoval, near Brussels. The Deaubois family was already hiding elderly relatives of Eliezer's, the Rabinowitz couple. Shoshanah and the boys stayed with them for about 18 months. During their time in Genoval, they celebrated Passover in accordance with Jewish law, and each of the three boys prepared a Passover Haggadah. Ephraim's Haggadah is displayed here.
In the course of Passover 1944, Marie Galvin (Deaubois) took the bus to Brussels to bring matzos to the hiding families. On her way back to the village, the Germans halted the bus for a spot-check. Marie managed to slip off the bus and made the rest of the journey to Genoval on foot.
