Page 31 - MIN SJA 2 NOV 2015

6 ZATERDAG AMIGOE
31 OKTOBER 2015
Fundashon Sentro di Bario Fleur de Marie

The district of Fleur de Marie
is situated under the Queen

Juliana Bridge.

By Judice Ledeboer

Only a few years ago, some of the neighborhood streets were not paved, there
were a lot of dilapidated houses, and the area was pretty shabby. Some people
considered the area a ghetto. Today, the residents of the district are proud
again of their neighborhood. Foundation Monumentenzorg [for preservation of
historic buildings], in collaboration with Stadsherstel [urban regeneration], has
extensively renovated the area. Old houses were demolished, and new houses
were built. Now, many of the original residents are living in the neighborhood,
again. At the moment, there are 185 residents, who live in 90 houses.

At the heart of the district is the community center. Each community has its
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tral role in society. The building of the community center was renovated four
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surrounded by chairs [a community room], a kitchen, and an area with tables
where people can eat. Everything is constructed in such a way that the wind
can blow through, which makes it nice and cool. The kitchen is spacious, and
boasts various cookers where local meals are daily prepared by two women
who live in the district. They prepare about 30 meals a day.

Everybody is welcome, and can come for a meal from Monday to Friday, at
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also subscribe there.

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the houses, streets, sewers and lighting renewed, but the entire district un-
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about the needs of the residents. They were interviewed and several projects
were organized to assist them. A survey was conducted, which showed that
many elderly people felt ‘lonely’. Now, psychological assistance is available for
them, and the district hired a social worker to help the residents.

Activities are organized for all target groups. For the elderly above the age
of 60, there are weekly coffee mornings. There is also a kids’ club, a youth
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themselves ‘the Scharloo Boys’, as well. The central point of the activities of
the groups is always the community center.

The kids ‘ club organizes an annual holiday plan, and optional tutoring for kids.
The center organizes all this without subsidies. The teenagers daily use the
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and men who are deployed to stimulate active engagement between the resi-
dents. They followed training courses to learn to plan activities, and now they
can organize activities on their own initiative. The ‘Scharloo Boys’ also orga-
nize events such as sports activities, domino drives, and an occasional outing.
There is a lot of attention at the center for sustainable development, and it
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there is close cooperation with various care institutions, to be able to support
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