Good news is not news, it is said. Well, we think so! Read here the weekly overview of the sweetest, nicest, most hopeful and funniest news from Groningen and Drenthe. With matching songs.
Young successful football players often talk about a boy’s book. Well now the children’s author can start tapping. And to the great story of Thijs Dallinga, 22 years old and football player from Hellum. Via the clubs Siddeburen, Hoogezand, FC Emmen, FC Groningen and Excelsior, he made the leap to the French club Toulouse. And not only that. He also takes prizes .
Last Sunday, Toulouse won the final of the French Cup with Dalllinga in the leading role. FC Nantes was beaten 5-1. Dalllnga scored at the Stade de France in Paris. Not once, twice! And was crowned top scorer of the cup competition with six goals. The striker is not exactly dry in the competition with 12 goals. National coach Koeman, are you paying attention? Boy book? Hero epic .
Making your dreams come true, that is the most beautiful thing in existence. See Thijs Dallinga above. Silvian Bakker (18) from Stadskanaal has been crazy about trains all his life. He recently gave up his higher vocational training as an ICT specialist to become a train engineer at Arriva. As long as no one contradicts it, he is one of the youngest train drivers in the Netherlands. Silvian is on the right track with his dream career, or in other words, he is well on track .
For many people, the most exciting thing about King’s Day is the King’s Day draw of the State Lottery. Because who wouldn’t want to receive 250,000 euros for twenty years? Everyone does. The main prize fell on the lottery tickets of five people, including someone from Assen. He or she will receive 50,000 euros over the next twenty years. A million in total. Nicely taken anyway ? And, in the same lottery, someone from Stadskanaal won a prize of 100,000 euros. That’s also a good thing .
More winners of great cash prizes. Twenty-four residents of the Magelhaen in Veendam each won 25,000 euros in the Postcode Lottery. One of them also won a car. Gaston Starreveld – you know of the very emphatic inswingers ‘goooeeeedemiddaaaag’ or gooeeedenaavoond’ – personally came to make the Veendam people happy with flowers and checks. Apparently it can’t be finished this week .
More about money, but of a completely different order. Deputy Fleur Gräper leaves the province of Groningen. However, she does not leave the stragglers behind uncared for. As just about her last act, she dragged new clear agreements with the government about the financing of the southern ring road in Groningen out of the fire. The Hague is investing 40 million euros in the conversion, which puts the project on track to be completed in September 2024. And hopefully without outstanding invoices, because Gräper has long since been doing something completely different .
More money and different again. The Tax and Customs Administration had set its sights on the turnover of village center De Zaandorre in Zuidlaarderveen. Then you think, village hall…. Zuidlaarderveen… that can never be tons of turnover from which the tax authorities then take a nice piece (or two) of it. However, the Tax and Customs Administration thought otherwise and literally and figuratively presented the village hall board with a hefty attack.
Whether sales tax would be paid for a while. Such an attack would not survive the village hall and so an objection was lodged. The attack was only shelved after mediation by the National Ombudsman. With a turnover of 68,000 euros per year, the village hall is entitled to an exemption from that tax. That industrious tax officer could have figured that out in advance. Would have saved a lot of time, work, misery and money. Yet, all’s well that ends well.
And to top it off, another winner. Camping and restaurant De Drie Provinciën in Een-West has won an ACSI award in the category ‘best restaurant at a campsite’. The campsite and the restaurant must have very satisfied guests because they voted en masse. One in ten votes in this category from ACSI – for those who don’t know, that is a… yes camping organization – went to Een-West. Congratulations and enjoy your meal there!! According to the regular guests, that is fine. And what do they call that again? A nice tent !
What’s your good news? Do you see a tweet or an Instagram post with fun or remarkable news? Let us know at [email protected] stating good news and you will read it – with a bit of luck – not much later in this column.