LHBTIQ+ people are regularly victims of harassment and aggression in asylum seekers' centers. In 2016, they found a year's housing peace in a building on Spaarndammerdijk now called Villa Buitenlust. The place is adjacent to the Buurtboerderij and in 2016 was only just under our management. To introduce them to the city, buddies from De Regenboog Groep go out with these refugees and we organize Meet & Eats. The project does not go unnoticed. In 2016, it received the Tom Sebastian Gans Prize, intended for a person or organization that has shown merit in addressing a current social problem. "It still gives me goose bumps," says then-project leader Jos Holweg.
Catch your breath in nature
As of 2018, people can go to Villa Buitenlust on the Westerpark for so-called respite care. This is shelter, to be able to recover for a while and to prevent worse. Close to the city, yet sheltered in nature. "The silence took some getting used to," says Bianca. She is one of our early overnight guests at the Villa. A severe burnout brings her to this place. Sleeping is getting better and better, and after a while she can handle "normal" life again. And that is exactly the intention: at Villa Buitenlust we work on resilience.
De Regenboog Groep wins the Tom Sebastian Goose Prize!
.Villa Buitenlust
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