A barbecue where you only find namesakes. 160 Barten experienced this weekend at the sports park in Den Bosch during the Bartbq. The men chatted, drank a beer together and laughed a little. And for this one time our reporter Jan was also welcome. “Bart is called a bond in one way or another,” says one of the bartens present.
The men are all in a WhatsApp group for Barten alone. That group has been around since 2017 and already has more than 1600 members. Divided into two groups, because at the beginning of this year the maximum that WhatsApp allows was reached. And by far most come from Brabant. “That is why we also keep the barbecue here,” says Bart.
Only Barts were invited to the barbecue on Saturday afternoon. That is why Omroep Brabant is renamed Omroep Brabart. “And from now on we call you Bart-Jan,” Bart tells Omroep Brabart reporter Jan Waalen.
While enjoying a beer and a cheese stem, which is arranged thanks to a barter deal with a baker with the name Bart, the men have a chat. “How beautiful is it to come together and share the same name?” Says Bart. “Do you know a different name that such as large groups are?” Bart adds. “We don’t know each other, come from all over the Netherlands and it’s just very nice.”
“I didn’t have this in the past and now. I feel a commitment.”
What is a typical feature from Bart? Sociability, they all say. And that is also noticeable. For the meetings, the club even has special stickers, T-shirts and caps. Bart: “I personally like the word jokes on it the most: Home Is Where The Bart IsIt is very cozy here and in Bart and Kidneys. “
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In fact, it is only strange, such a barbecue with strangers who share only one thing, says Jan. But the barten disagree. “I don’t find it strange at all and start to appreciate it more and more,” says Bart. “Six months ago, Bart invited me to the group and now I am here. I didn’t have that before and now. I feel a commitment.”
And that commitment goes further than just the Bartbq, because the bartens see each other more often. “If you go to a festival, we throw it in the group and there is always a Bart that also goes. Then we meet there, we drink a beer together and it is always fun. Just like you’ve known each other for years.”
