Piet for Automaton
Piet de Vries, AutoMaatje in heart and soul
The ANWB-AutoMaatje transport service was launched last February in the municipality of Oosterhout. Voluntary drivers bring their less mobile fellow citizens with their own car, for a fee of 30 cents per kilometre to their destination. Sometimes it is a short drive to, for example, the physiotherapist in the district, but sometimes there is a request for a journey at a greater distance. A lot is possible at AutoMaatje. It is a transport service, but it also has a social function. It's not just about the ride, but also about the social contact.
Piet de Vries seems to be an AutoMaatje in heart and soul. He tells his story with enthusiasm.
He has been living in Oosterhout for 1 year and is an advocate of the "caring society". He sees it as a social duty to help others. "And the word duty should not be taken too literally", Piet immediately falls for the door. "Then it sounds so negative and it isn't at all. Find something that suits you. Then you make someone else happy and with that you also do yourself a favor". Driving others is made for him. He likes to drive and has the time for it. "I do others a favor with my rides, but in the meantime I get to meet new people and get to know my environment. Thanks to AutoMaatje I have been to places where I would otherwise never go". Piet spends part of his free time with his children, but he still has enough time at his disposal and he likes to spend it in a meaningful way.
He goes shopping with one of his customers once a week at a fixed time. His furthest destination so far was a ride to the hospital in Roosendaal. When asked what he thinks of the social aspect of AutoMaatje, Piet spontaneously gives an honest answer. "Actually, I'm more into driving. I like to talk to people, but then it has to be about something. If I take people somewhere and something comes up that I find interesting, I definitely go into it" . Piet has a wide range of interests. "I know very little about a lot of things", he laughs, "but if it interests me, I like to find out how I can help someone. And I also learn a lot from my customers. Some of them really know a lot about Oosterhout".
Piet recently transported a lady of over 90 years, who needed a new passport, to the town hall. He noticed that she suffered from the limitations of her age. "Can you imagine how she must have felt when she ended up in that big hall? So I went in with that lady and got her a receipt from the machine. Then I went to the counter with her for a while and after a week we collected her new passport together." When he brought her home with her passport, the lady said: "with such help, it is less bad to grow old". And that was exactly the nail on the head with Piet. "That's what I do it for! If you can do this for someone, you can move forward, right?".
During his rides, Piet and his colleagues gain experience and that experience can be used to further improve AutoMaatje. He has already discovered a point that should receive more attention. During his rides, he regularly has to wait somewhere for his customer. While waiting, he has already been approached once by one of the city guards, because he was not in a regular parking lot.
"It would be very nice if AutoMaatje would be better known to people from the municipality, the police and the city guards. My customers usually have difficulty walking, so I would like to drop them off as close to the destination as possible, but then I can't always find a regular parking space. In that case, it would help if there were facilities for this. The parking attendant can see that I am driving for AutoMaatje, because there is a sticker on my car. Some leniency, in whatever form, would be in place". That's how it is.
Would you like to know more about ANWB AutoMaatje or are you less mobile and would you also like to use this transport service? Please contact Oosterhoutvoorelkaar.
Oosterhoutvoorelkaar, Arendshof 83, is available on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM and on Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM. Rides must be requested at least 48 hours in advance.
Phone: 0162-471115 Email: [email protected]

Doing is the new thinking
Doing is the new thinking Doing is the new thinking! Oosterhoutvoorelkaar in conversation with Eugène Springer "Doing is the new Thinking." The tone is set. Eugène Springer, man with a social heart, volunteer and cook at the Dining Room, says this with great conviction during a conversation with Oosterhoutvoorelkaar. Eugène started the Dining Room in January 2017 in the Bunthoef. And that became a great success. Even such a great success that Eugène is now wondering whether he is not exceeding his goal. At the start, the Dining Room had 24 guests, but now between 70 and 90 guests come every week to enjoy a tasty plate of hot meal at Eugène. "Actually, the Dining Room is a hobby that got out of hand. It seemed like a challenge to show that for an amount of 3 euros you can make a meal that is healthy, tasty and fresh and with a slightly different twist than what you cook at home". The moment he decided to start the Dining Room as a volunteer, he realized he was making a commitment. After all, voluntary is not without obligation. Now he feels like he can never stop. "Morally speaking, the pressure to continue is high right now." Since an Indian rice table was on the menu, the number of guests has not been lower than 70. "And that's getting a bit too massive for me," says Eugène. He is now looking for other ideas to change this. "Maybe I should go cook at another location to take the routine out of it a bit. It shouldn't become a soup kitchen." Eugène Springer started the Dining Room not specifically to help people with a small budget to have a good meal. His intention was precisely to bring a diversity of people together at the table. Eating together is good for establishing and maintaining social contacts. And that without interference from all kinds of authorities, because Eugène hates procedures. From the 3 euros he receives per meal, he pays the costs to be incurred and he doesn't want any further "hassle". He does the cooking himself, but when serving he is regularly assisted by other volunteers. "I prefer to get volunteers here from the area. And sometimes I can also teach them the tricks of the trade, which increases their chance of work in the hospitality industry." Eugène hates sweet talk and fancy words. "Then people talk about social cohesion in the neighbourhood. That is of course nonsense, because with an initiative you always only reach a part of the people who need it." As long as others don't make a splash with his initiative, Eugène thinks it's fine. He doesn't like "what's right for what". Doing something for society gives you a lot of positive results. In any case, it gives you a lot of fun and new contacts and in some cases it helps you find a paid job. "It is also good for young people if they do voluntary work," Eugène continues enthusiastically. "Gradually they learn how a cow catches a hare and they work on their social skills". Returning to Eugène's statement "doing is the new way of thinking", he explains: "there are far too many meetings these days. If you look at the efficiency of all those consultations, it is often sad. You just have to start with something you want and if things go wrong, you adjust. If you really like something, just do it". Do you feel addressed by Eugène's enthusiasm and do you also want to work as a volunteer? Then visit the website Oosterhoutvoorelkaar.nl. All questions for help are listed on the website and you can see for yourself how diverse those questions are. Or come by during our walk-in consultation hours. On Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. or on Wednesday or Friday mornings from 9 a.m. to 12 noon at Arendshof 83. The coffee is ready! But you can also call us on 0162-471115. Share these stories and inspire others to help too! Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Whatsapp Forward
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