“I find washing dishes boring, it takes a long time,” says Timo. He’d rather be behind the bar. The children have learned a lot about the catering industry on Sundays in recent weeks. They visited a wholesaler and came up with a menu for lunch with the owners of LiBo.
The initiative comes from Petje Af. Thirty Sundays a year the group meets to learn about professions. “They receive a guest lesson and visit a company,” says Manda Boon, location manager of Petje Af in Coevorden. “Then the children give a presentation. Today they can therefore take over a restaurant.”
Esmee now knows how to walk with a tray full of glasses. “We had lessons in it. We had to do a slalom with cups of water on a leaf.” Petje Af believes it is important that all children in Southeast Drenthe have the same opportunities. “Due to rising energy costs and inflation, people can sometimes no longer manage on one wage,” says Boon. “Then you can’t give your children the same opportunities as people with better-filled wallets.”
In the kitchen, mozzarella and tomato are strung on skewers. Today’s menu includes a board with all kinds of goodies. The guests trickle in. Mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers are looking for a place. Geesje, Timo’s mother, sits in a corner of the shop with bonus father Chris. “We love that he does this. Timo often comes home excited with stories about what he has learned.”