Today we celebrate the 100th birthday of Baron Roger Coekelbergs.

With six of his friends he was incarcerated in Fort Breendonk for demonstrating against the departure of East Front volunteers. After his liberation he joined the resistance. He became the leader of the Luc-Marc intelligence network for the province of Hainaut and later participated in the liberation of Germany with the American army. After the war he pursues a brilliant academic career with the Royal Military Academy (chemistry and physics) while also working for a private company (UCB).

In 2000 he becomes chairman of the Breendonk Memorial and launches an ambitious renovation project for the site. Today he is honorary chairman of Breendonk and one of the last “Breendonk survivors”.