“I am Joep Scholder, 64 years old, and have been living in Noord for 15 years. Every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, I help customers with broken electrical appliances, welcoming them with a chat and a cup of coffee or tea.”
All stories
“I am Marian Labib, 32 years old; I come from Egypt and have been living in the Netherlands for four years now. For the past two years, I have been living with my husband and daughter (3) in Amsterdam-Noord.”
Dori Hoogerdijk (62) has been a volunteer at De Zonnebloem for over twelve years. She organizes activities for residents in the North. “I also regularly accompany as a guide during holidays and outings, spoiling the people!”
School’s Cool ensures that they can give children who are starting high school a good start. Irma Vejzovic (21) is one of the volunteer mentors who visits her pupils once a week to help them with their schoolwork.
Metta Touray was in South Africa last year, where she helped out at a children’s home for five months. Now she is a first-year history student at the UvA. She also reads to Nour for an hour and a half each week to help her with her language skills.
When Sander (34) was in his early twenties, he completely lost himself in drugs. So much so, that he even experienced psychoses. He no longer wanted to live like that, and he decided to fight for a change.
Berend Smits (23) is a language coach. Every week he meets with Abdulwali (30), a refugee from Somalia. “A kind of friendship has developed.”
Mohamed Marrabou, 52 years old, is the father of five children. He is currently training for the marathon in Genk, Belgium, and is an assistant coach in Doras’ running group.

