With Rick Beukers, Edam-Volendam gets a young, ambitious mayor with roots in another fishing village. Who is this VVD member from Bunschoten-Spakenburg? And what can residents expect from him?
Volendam will have a mayor who understands the culture of a fishing village, says councilor Wiebe de Boer (VVD) from Bunschoten-Spakenburg. “Just like the people of Volendam, we are hard-working people who do not want too much outside interference. We manage our own needs.”
Edam-Volendam opts for a relatively young mayor with the 34-year-old Beukers.The city council approved the committee’s recommendation during a special council meeting on Thursday evening, December 19. There were a total of fifteen applicants for the position.
Zuiderzee mentality
Beukers not only brings administrative experience, but also a real ‘Zuiderzee mentality’, says Alfred de Graaf (Christian Workers’ Party). He was born and raised in Bunschoten, which has now grown into neighboring Spakenburg. Traditionally, farmers come from Bunschoten and fishermen from Spakenburg, but those dividing lines have almost completely blurred, says De Graaf.
In the video below, the people of Bunschoten compare themselves with the people of Volendam. Text continues.
What still splits the village in two every now and then is football. On one side of Spakenburg are ‘the blues’ of SV Spakenburg and on the other side the ‘reds’ of IJsselmeervogels. The derby ended in violence more than once. Beukers is a blue one, De Graaf knows. “I gave him training at the club. Now I have to be careful what I say, of course, but he was not bad. He has switched to tennis.”
His nephews or second cousins - De Graaf does not remember exactly – moved further up the football ladder and played for years in the first team of SV Spakenburg. Another family member was chairman of the IJsselmeervogels for a time. “It is a big family, like all families here. But it is a well-known one, everyone here knows a Beukers.”
WhatsApp group with young mayors
As alderman, Beukers was responsible for the municipality’s finances in recent years. He previously worked as a financial advisor, after studying economics at the VU. He leaves the municipality’s budget tidy, says De Graaf. “We are one of the few municipalities in the plus.”
Beukers joins a group of nineteen mayors under the age of 40, who also share a WhatsApp group together. According to De Graaf, his young age is mainly an advantage. “He is active on social media and knows how to use it.” On his X account, Beukers regularly shares photos of working visits as an alderman or deputy mayor.
“It has sometimes happened that Beukers reminded me during a council meeting of something I had said myself,” says De Graaf. With his enormous file knowledge, Beukers was a popular councilor, according to the council member. A bit driven too. “He lives for politics,” he adds.