An old director’s house in Wormerveer has been serving as a shelter for seven Ukrainian refugees since last Thursday. It was allowed to take a while: the house stood empty for a month and a half, refurbished and all. Irma Bentvelzen is still happy: “In the end it went very quickly.”
“Last Thursday someone called at 4 pm that people would be on the sidewalk at 5 pm,” laughs Irma. “We jumped in the car, quickly did some shopping, drove to Wormerveer and then people were already at the door.” A large family with four wives and three children could live in the house.
Temporary reception location
Not long after the war broke out, Irma thought it would be a good idea to help. Her daycare Baloe had bought this house in Wormerveer as a new branch, but was still waiting for the right permits. That can take a long time, so in the meantime it is a good temporary reception location, she thought.
The house was in a bad state: the kids in the neighborhood even called it a haunted house. They worked with united forces: three weeks later the house was habitable.
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Then the great waiting began. Irma wanted the authorities to guide the refugees, but weeks had already passed and the impatience struck† Was there a need for shelters?
At the beginning of this month, a message was finally received: the location could be used as a small-scale shelter. That actually contradicts the zoning plan, but mayor Jan Hamming thought the situation was too serious not to use it and issued a so-called dispensation off.
Own spot
So a month and a half after the renovation, the people are there. It makes Irma feel good. Today she was still there to bring a received bicycle. “We were immediately asked to tea. I really had the idea that they had found their own place there. They were very well received in the neighborhood, very nice.”
She concludes: “We had the feeling: ‘Did we do everything for nothing?’ But if you now see how it is inhabited and that it is very nice for those people to have their own place, it gives a good feeling. It has been worth the work.”