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HAULERWIJK – A club of four enthusiastic ladies have managed to celebrate King’s Day exuberantly this Saturday. Residents no longer have to move to ‘orange villages’, but the celebrations take place on their own soil. Hillanda Drent is one of the four initiators.
‘I always thought it was a shame that King’s Day always passed quietly in Haulerwijk. The flag was up, but there was no place to party. The residents soon moved to Roden or Leek to stand in the tent or at the cloth market. We can do that too, we thought.’ Together with Sanne ten Hoor, Grietje van der Velde and Jildau de Jong, a complete program has been created. ‘My husband is on the committee that always organizes Snikkeweek and we have worked a lot with them. They had experience with applying for permits and other matters. Fortunately, we did not have to reinvent the organizational wheel.’ Local Interest de Progress Haulerwijk makes the event financially possible and helps with the permit application.
The program will start on Saturday April 27 from 1 p.m. in the Dorpspark. ‘From 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. we have fun games for the children and items can be sold at a clothing market. They do not have to register in advance. Each child receives a stamp card so they can visit all the games. We think it is important that all children can participate, so all activities are free for the children.’ And then a nice treat awaits, says Hillanda. ‘The full stamp card can be handed in for a nice, cooling ice cream. They can go on the bouncy castle, an obstacle course, there is a football game and there is also the opportunity to go pony riding. There are all kinds of fun old Dutch games to play around. The children can also have their hair decorated, so there’s plenty of fun!’ No registration is required for the rug market and anyone who has a rug and a large pile of second-hand items can go there from 1 p.m. There is also plenty to do for adults, because from 3 p.m. Folkert Eisinga and his daughter Melanie will provide you with wonderful sing-along hits. ‘We have managed to arrange a small tent where the spectacle will take place. Haulerwijk star Jolien will also be present with her food truck Bij Jolien, where you can enjoy delicious food. It is nice to make it possible together with the residents, as all volunteers show. We are very happy with the help of the volunteers young and old(er) (13) who want to help us on this day. Everyone is very positive and it is well received.’ The ladies have also thought carefully about a plan B. ‘If everything falls into the water due to rain, all activities will take place in the sports hall. But of course we don’t assume that!’ Currently there is as much advertising as possible. Advertisements have already been placed in the village’s monthly magazine, flyers have been distributed at the primary school and the public is already being encouraged on social media. There is so much fun organizing it that people are already secretly looking to next year. ‘But first we’ll have to wait and see this year and see how things went during the evaluation. If it is a success, we would really like to make it an annual event.’ The organization tries to divide as few tasks as possible on King’s Day itself. ‘This way we can easily jump in anywhere and enjoy the day ourselves. We hope to welcome dozens of children and many fellow villagers. We managed to convert our nostalgia for our own party into a party for the entire village. And of course we hope to see a lot of red, white, blue and orange! Until Saturday!’
What: King’s Day Haulerwijk
Where: Village park in Haulerwijk
Info: Facebook @Koningsdag_Haulerwijk or www.haulerwijk.nl
