Joséphine Scherer has lived in Belvaux since her birth on 6 December 1915. In 1938, she married the baker Nicolas Welu. Together they bought house 77 in the former Rue de Rédange - now Rue de France.
The Second World War marked a very perilous stage in the life of Joséphine Scherer. The incursion of the Germans forced the Welu family to organise its evacuation on 11 May 1940. That day was a terrible ordeal for the young woman, pregnant with her first child, Marie-Marguerite. The column of civilian cars, fleeing from the aggressor, was attacked by a German plane. The convoy became a machine-gun target. Joséphine's mother was killed and two other people were seriously wounded. The family did not have time to mourn, the mother was buried in France and was not repatriated until after the war.
After six weeks of evacuation in France, the Welu family returned to Belvaux. Not accepting the yoke of the Nazi occupation, Joséphine and her husband join the Resistance. Their house was part of a network organising the passage of French prisoners of war, British airmen and Luxembourg draft dodgers from Bettendorf to France. They collaborated with the LVL (Lëtzebuerger Volléks-Liga) and the LPL (Lëtzebuerger Patriote-Liga). Joséphine Welu-Scherer became a smuggler and accompanied many fugitives to the border or to a new hiding place in great danger.
After the war, the Welu-Scherer couple began to return to normal life and continued to work in the bakery. In 1951, their second child, Paul, was born. Joséphine Welu-Scherer was a member of the socialist party and was also involved in local politics.
To honour her commitment and courage, she was awarded the medal of the Order of the Resistance in 1985. In the summer of 1997, she passed away at the age of 82.
Her kindness and helpfulness remain engraved in the memory of the people of Belvaux.
Source:
● Brochure "Tribute to Joséphine Welu-Scherer", published by the Commune and the Commission for Equal Opportunities between Women and Men of Sanem.