The annual White Carnation Award for the best initiative for Dutch veterans was not won by a Drent. Nevertheless, this year’s prize has a Drenthe touch, because artist Jelmer Zwaan from Meppel was allowed to make the trophy.
The figurine consists of a woman with wings on her back in the shape of the ‘V’ of veterans. She rests on the leaves of a carnation and stares into the distance. “That is something all veterans recognise: keep looking ahead,” says Zwaan in his workshop.
The artist knows all about it: Zwaan himself served five years in the army. He was deployed to Afghanistan twice as an infantry driver. There he experienced both beautiful and horrible moments.
“They called us the holiday platoon there, because we actually didn’t have much to do. Then we lay in the sun, played cards or made films with the children who lived there,” Zwaan recalls of his first broadcast.
That changed in June 2007, when his unit was targeted by a suicide bomber while patrolling a market in the village of Deh Rawod. “He came riding on a scooter full of explosives. I was on the lookout and was just relieved when I heard a bang and saw a large cloud of mushrooms rising above the mark.”
Eight Dutch soldiers, colleagues of Zwaan, were injured. One of them, Lieutenant Tom Krist (24) from Tilburg, died a few days later in hospital from his injuries. “Every year we all go to drink beer at Tom’s grave. But you have to get on with your life.”