Honorary citizenship was introduced to the municipality of Coevorden by council decision of October 10, 1994. It is awarded ‘as a token of great appreciation, affection and gratitude, both to residents and non-residents of the municipality, who have acted towards the municipality or the Coevorden community in exceptional ways. wisely meritorious.’
An honorary citizen receives a gold medal, a kind of medal. The obverse shows the municipal coat of arms of Coevorden with the motto ‘Multis Periculus Supersum’. That means: ‘I survive in the face of many dangers’. On the back are three star points of the fortified town of Coevorden, as they were present in the 17th century. The five stars symbolize the five former municipalities that have been connected to one municipality since 1998.
It is the third time that Coevorden appoints someone as an honorary citizen. In 2004, Renate Groenewold received honorary citizenship after winning a gold medal at the World Allround Speed Skating Championships. Bert Bouwmeester received the title in 2021 during his retirement as mayor, after almost eighteen years as mayor in the municipality of Coevorden.