Margot Nijkamp from Hilversum cooks for her elderly neighbor Lex twice a week, ‘just because she likes it’. Lex lost his wife in 2019 and has sometimes felt alone in the house since then. He is therefore extremely grateful to Margot. “And she also cooks very well.”
“He prefers to eat Dutch food, but he recently gave me an Indian cookbook as a gift. The hint was clear then,” Nijkamp says laughingly about Lex. Twice a week she cooks for the eighty-year-old who has now been a widower for almost five years. One day she prepares a Dutch dish for him, the next day something Indian or Italian.
This week it’s time for an Indian chicken dish from the brand new cookbook. It should bubble in the oven for an hour. “It’s always a lot of fun when Lex comes by,” says Nijkamp. “He always comes here around 5 p.m. and then we have a chat. He now knows my children well, they love him too. We have built a very special bond.”
Lex has to wait a while before his chicken dish is ready. In the meantime, he says that he is extremely grateful for Nijkamp’s help. “I feel very much at home here. They also invite me to the family barbecue. That makes me very happy. And she also cooks very well.”
Home Cooked Foundation
Nijkamp came into contact with Lex through Stichting Thuisgekookt, a foundation that connects more than 20,000 volunteer home cooks to people who find it difficult to cook for themselves due to their age, health or disability.
The foundation has been around for some time and has recently also been active in Hilversum, says spokesperson Gijs Kooiker. There’s a storm right away. “We are currently growing very quickly in Hilversum. We receive a tremendous number of registrations from people who want to cook for a neighbor, but also from people who need contact and a tasty meal.”
The foundation ensures a good match. “We see whether people live near each other and whether they like the same dishes. In this way we hope that people will build a lasting relationship with each other and that it will be and remain fun for everyone.”
In any case, the match was a success for Nijkamp and Lex. “I really enjoy those two days when they cook for me. I hope I can continue to come here for a while.”