4 x 11 is a big party. And that is what the jubilee carnival club De Waterstraot from Halsteren wants to portray with not one, but two floats. A double challenge, which is being worked on with man and power. Because the solidarity, being there for each other, that’s part of the Waterstraot.
And that has always been the case, according to the stories that are shared. Pepijn Luijks’ love for building started at an early age. “As a little man I was allowed to help my father on Saturdays,” he says. And that went so well that the 22-year-old fanatic became a board member last year.
Lendert Schuurbiers also grew up building. “For me, this is just home.” His father started at the club, he even designed cars. “In our house it was always about the cars. The kitchen table was always full of sketches.” There are currently even three generations of the Schuurbiers family at the club.
“The loss of Wout made a big impression on me.”
In the 44 years that the construction club exists, countless memories have been made. “The great thing about that period is all the fun we had,” says chairman Michel Nefs. “But there have also been tears, such as the loss of Wout. That made a great impression on me.” Wout Hagenaars died in 2011 due to an accident during construction in the warehouse.
Lendert agrees with Michel’s words. He still remembers well the guard of honor that formed on the Grote Markt when the Waterstraot car drove up. Especially for Wood. “Everyone was clapping. The car was filled with flowers. The respect we received there was special.”
“We want to go extra big for our anniversary.”
This year, the construction club is therefore participating in the Bergen op Zoom parade with two large cars. These both participate in the A-classification, the highest classification.
One of the cars comes from the corona period. The second was made especially for the anniversary. “Of course we want to go all out for an anniversary,” explains Michel. It is also a jubilee year for him, as the chairman has been a member of the construction club for 33 years.
Two cars means twice as much work. “I like that,” says Pepijn nonchalantly. “Well, if you ask me if we’re going to do that again: no way!”, Michel adds with a laugh. “It’s really a lot of work.” In any case, one thing is already clear: “We are going to have a very nice carnival again this year!”, says Pepijn.