A busy week in Drenthe. Christmas was on the program and Drenthe was decorated with lights. At the beginning of this week, researchers discovered the names behind two faces in the Westerbork film.
The Babayants family from Emmen has been in a church shelter for more than a month on Monday. To avoid deportation, the family went into hiding in a church in Kampen. As long as a worship service is held there, the government cannot remove them from the church. Daughter Ariana Babayants told RTV Drenthe what this means for her and her family. The family members fled Uzbekistan because they were threatened and spent eight years in an asylum seeker center in Emmen.
Two faces from the Westerbork film were recognized on Tuesday. It concerns Marcus Pels and Hendrika Brandon, who are transported to Auschwitz on the day of the filming. They are seen twice in the film. Marcus Pels was gassed immediately after arriving in Auschwitz. Hendrika Brandon survived the war, as did their daughter and son, who were placed with a foster family.
Two homes are destroyed in a fire in Roderwolde. The fire starts in a barn attached to a farmhouse. The smoke can be seen in the wide area and people in the area receive an NL alert due to hazardous substances. Much sadness for two families just before Christmas. Mayor Klaas Smid of the municipality of Noordenveld sympathizes with the people who lost their homes due to the sea of flames.
For many people, Christmas is a festival of love and reflection, often together with family. But people who miss someone at Christmas dinner sometimes want to think about that. This is possible in Coevorden and Hoogeveen in a special greenhouse..
The real Christmas lover can enjoy themselves on Thursday in Barger-Compascuum. The Veenpark has been completely transformed into a nostalgic Christmas village.
Get a spring roll on Friday or Saturday: it is a staple for many residents of Elim. But after twelve years, spring roll baker Hoa Nguyen has to move his stall, his permit is about to expire. And the village is not happy about that.
Twice a week you can find the spring roll stall along the Carstendijk in Elim. This weekend, entrepreneur Hoa is selling his snacks in the village for the last time. “I didn’t have a good Christmas, I cried a lot, whined a lot.”