The Broer family originates from Waddinxveen, a town in the middle of the province of South Holland. Sometime in the nineteenth century, Willem Broer moved to Lekkerkerk, a village on the river Lek. Willem was a baker, and so was his eldest son Nicolaas. They had their bakery near the dike in the hamlet Opperduit. In 1923 a third child was born in Nicolaas's family, a son called Dirk. He was the father of the creator of this website, Nico Broer.

I spent my childhood in Lekkerkerk, where my parents lived. I went to primary school there and followed the MAVO. I already knew I wanted to be a teacher when I was young. Throughout my working life, I have worked in education in various positions. In 1981 I even married a teacher, Yneke Eshuis. We had two children, Maarten and Sanne and two grandchildren, Rens and Inès. We now live in Sliedrecht, but before that, we lived in Schoonhoven for fourteen years.