Twenty years ago, Beverdam joined the Bargeres retailers’ association on his own initiative. “The Santa you have now is so bad, this could be better,” was his message at the time. And in the end it was Beverdam himself who became the center of the children’s party in Bargeres during the next arrival. “In those previous years I had also made many home and school visits, so I knew what I could do.”
In the first year, Beverdam itself offered to board the Steamboat free of charge, so that the organization could see if you liked it. And gradually Beverdam’s activities expanded more and more around December 5. “After Bargeres, we also did Emmerhout and Rietlanden, for example, until I eventually became Saint Nicholas in the center of Emmen. We went from 8 Petes in Bargeres to 100 Petes in Emmen this year.”
In addition to his work as Saint Nicholas, Beverdam was also closely involved in the preparations for the arrivals. Beverdam will also stop this. “But luckily I have a very good successor.”
In his two decades as Sint-Nicolaas, Beverdam has even had a foreign adventure. “At one point we were invited by a man in St. Petersburg. He had seen Sinterklaas once in the past and also wanted to bring him to Russia.” And so Beverdam went to Russia to play as Saint.