Ode to GerdaLentenHavertong | Shining example

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Amsterdam, 31 August 2024

Dear Mrs Lenten-Havertong, dear Gerda and godmother ‘Peetje’,

We do not yet know each other personally, yet you immediately came to my mind to pay tribute to you as Amsterdam turns 750 next year. To me, you are one of the women whose life is linked to Amsterdam, even though you have lived in so many other places as well. You have such a beautiful voice, one to dream away. As a child I unfortunately did not experience Sesame Street, I was a bit older. Still, your performances, singing, diction, pronunciation and voice are etched in my memory. When reading to children and the elderly, I have you in mind and hope to convey how important spoken language is for all of us: to be in conversation with each other!

You were born in Paramaribo on 23 October 1946 and lived with your parents and the other children. You loved singing from an early age and that went down well in the Evangelical Brotherhood. I knew the EBG from the Koningskerk, here in Watergraafsmeer, where there was so much hospitality. On 21 May 1966, you arrived in the Netherlands to study and get the Principal Teacher's Certificate. You did not come to Amsterdam, but lived ‘on estate’ in The Hague. In 1974, you obtained the ‘Middelbare Akte Pedagogiek’ with a specialisation in Educational Studies. You took this course in Amsterdam. Fortunately... Amsterdam after all. You then returned to Suriname to work in education. You are politically committed: in 1975, Suriname became independent and you wanted to help build the country together with friends. When you were 30, your daughter Zuléma was born. You always focused your attention and love on the welfare of children, women and education and dedicated yourself to this. In 1976, you were named Singer of the Year in Suriname and in the film ‘Kon hesi baka - Come back soon’ you sang a song in Sranantongo. I have since noticed that singing is also a means of learning a language.

In 1979, you returned to the Netherlands and became a professional artist. You performed in the theatre, appeared on TV and in films and could be heard as a voice-over. You presented the Cultural Surinamese Women's Manifestation around Sophie Redmond and hosted a one-woman show there. From 1985, you starred in Sesame Street, where your role gradually changed from young woman ‘Gerda’ to godmother ‘Peetje’.

I can still remember the shock when you had a serious car accident in September 1995, after which you had to spend a long time rehabilitating. Fortunately, you recovered. You performed again afterwards and were narrator at many concerts, including The Passion in 2016. How I would have loved to attend the performance ‘The Tears of Den Uyl’, in which you played with Wouter Bos, Rev Rudy Polanen and Kenneth Herdigein and many others. You have done a huge amount in so many diverse areas of Surinamese and Dutch culture. Role-breaking too, as you were not too shy to take on a male theatre role, such as that of Kreon in the play ‘Antigone’.

In 1987, you openly took a stand against black piet, by pointing out in a Sesame Street programme that every year, with the arrival of Sinterklaas in the Netherlands, black people of all ages are called black piet. That this is really not normal and very hurtful to black people. The much-used expression that swearing doesn't hurt is completely outdated. Current politics in the Netherlands frighten me, so let's always remain vigilant with each other!

In memory of your mother who suffered from dementia, you set up the Wiesje Foundation, named after her, and you are the chairman of its Dutch branch. The aim is to provide expert care for people with dementia. In 1999, the Knowledge Centre on Dementia was started in Paramaribo, since transferred to the Alzheimer Suriname Foundation. It now houses Residential Care Centre Wiesje, day centre for counselling, care, overall day care. Since 2015 the first residential unit for 24-hour care, seven days a week and in 2020 opening of the exclusive day care space for 25 clients. So important! Thanks in part to your commitment!

Through this ode, I would like to thank you from Amsterdam, 750 years old, for your contribution to society, here in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands and in Suriname.

All good wishes, goodbye and warm greetings,

Carin te Hoonte,

Language volunteer at Amsterdam Neighbourhood Women Contact, Memory of East, dementia nurse