Marjan Kroone from Assen has meant so much to healthcare in the African country of Benin that she has been appointed Knight in the Order of Orange Nassau. In a certain region of the country she is called ‘Mother Teresa’.
The royal award was presented on Saturday afternoon in Grand Café Zusjes de Boer during a festive meeting of the Aktie Benin (SAB) foundation. Kroone founded this foundation in early 1999, with the aim of improving public health in Benin.
She focused specifically on promoting the care of mother and child during childbirth and the subsequent phases. She was also committed to education in Benin.
Emigrated and returned
Five years after founding SAB, Kroone emigrated to Benin with her husband. She helped with the renovation of a health center in Boukombé, a region in the north of the country. Later she also helped expand another health center.
She also ensured that maternity cases, glasses, clothing, medicines and bandages were shipped to Benin. In 2011 she returned to the Netherlands due to the unsafe situation in the country, but she still has almost daily contact with Benin.
‘Mother Teresa’
Mayor Marco Out pinned the decorations on her on Saturday. “Marjan Kroone has worked selflessly and diligently for years for society and the people in Benin. To the residents of Boukombé she is considered a ‘Mother Theresa’. This shows that she has been of great significance to the people of Boukombé and the health staff in the region.”