THE HUNGRY MIND WINTER NEWS
November-December 2011,
Let’s start with some great news! You may have read it in the local newspapers: The Hungry Mind is to stay for at least another 5 years. The municipality of The Hague have given us the go-ahead to keep building bridges between the communities around the international school of The Hague. We can stay in our clubhouse. We don’t have to share our clubhouse with another sports club any more. We have to start paying rent to the municipality of The Hague and we are going to be responsible for the maintenance of the building ourselves. The Hungry Mind Foundation has changed a board and has set up a whole new operational structure for our future.
We celebrated our first anniversary and invited people who played an active role in our growth so far. Sponsors, relations and volunteers had dinner together. Listened to a positive speech on the future plans of The Hungry Mind and enjoyed jazz music from Jazz Combo Pepper Jazz.
To build our future we started selling ‘feel good shares’ at The Hungry Mind. If you are interested in being a ‘friend of The Hungry Mind’ please fill out a form at the bar and buy a ‘share for 50, 100 or 150 Euros. With this money, you can help build the future of The Hungry Mind. We will continue to be a welcoming ‘home away from home’ for internationally minded people in The Hague. The activity program will continue with the popular activities you may now be familiar with and will feature a number of new activities when it opens its doors again on January 9, 2012. The International School of The Hague is going to use The Hungry Mind clubhouse for expansion of their music school soon.
We have some more great events planned for the near future.
Future of The Hungry Mind.
Our plans to turn a double changing room into a dance, yoga and judo room are taking shape and we are waiting for offers to come in so we can start planning our ‘expansion’. The changing room has to serve as a changing room for our neighboring football club die Haghe at the weekend! We would also like to make better use of the clubhouse by creating a door from the clubhouse to the office. We would also like to change the stage slightly so we can use this as a separable room as well.
The last thing on our wish list is our ‘mini tennis court’. We would like to turn it into a semi permanently covered sports area, where young kids can safely do sports, whilst staying dry.
Looking back at our last term
The activities we ran in the Summer term were very well attended. Ollie de Geus and his Cricket sessions will return to The Hungry Mind in the Spring of 2012.
Run Archery, given by David Stevenhage, is a hit and will continue throughout the year.
Soccer, organized by soccer club Die Haghe is till going strong on Wednesday afternoons.
Pre-ballet given by Bessie Jansson is a great success. Eighteen ballerinas dance at The Hungry Mind on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. If you would like to come and watch the little ballerinas during their performance, please come and watch them on Tuesday 13 December or Thursday 15 December from 15.15
Yoga is back on Thursdays from 9.45-10.45 after the run.
Halloween: Monday 31 October we loved picking pumpkins from our own pumpkin patch. There was some great carving going on and great Halloween cupcakes baked by Annelies Dols. All proceeds went to KIKA – to support Chantal Maaswinkel in her New York marathon.
The ISH girls field hockey team invited visiting schools over for dinner at The Hungry Mind – great atmosphere and team building going on. Lots of boy helpers for C&S and CAS hours…. J
NOT TO MISS IN 2012
Friday 20 January, 18.30
Theatre performance: Suitcases & sacrefices by Plankgas
A very funny and emotional theatre performance, reflection on expat life. Not to miss!! (Nice gift for under the x-mas tree! – tickets for sale at The Hungry Mind clubhouse)
18.30 drinks – 19.30 performance starts
Thinking about the Summer holidays seems far away, but… check out this summers’
The Hague SUMMER CAMP at the Hungry Mind. David Stevenhage (Run-archery and athletics) has organized many summer camps and will dot it at our clubhouse.
Dates: 9-13 July and 13-17 August!
Phone David for more info: 0641712882
The Hungry Mind closes for the Christmas break on Thursday 15 December at 17.00 – after archery and the ballet performance.
The Hungry Mind clubhouse and facilities will be used for exams on Friday 16, Monday 19, Tuesday 20, Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 December.
We will be open again on Monday 9 January 2012 at 8.30.
Activities which have been paid for till 23 December will have their missed lesson in the first week after the holidays (9-13 January).
NEW YEAR 2012
As a trial in the period from 10-20 January The Hungry Mind will be open for Healthy lunches from 10.00-12.15 for ISH exams students. They can sit quietly, prepare their exams and enjoy home made soups, bagels, tostis, vegetables to dip in hommus, fresh orange juice, ginger and fresh mint teas and a wide variety of coffees and muffins.
We hope to see all of you at our Christmas market on Wednesday 14 December between 8.30-17.00 –
Mince pies and glue wine will be available. If you are traveling (home) early or are unable to come, we wish you a very merry Christmas and a very happy 2012.
Thanks to all of you for supporting The Hungry Mind! Looking forward to hearing all your worldly stories in the New Year. Happy holidays!
Newsletter– Autumn 2011 (Scroll down for Dutch version)
The Hungry Mind Clubhouse at Sport Park Ockenburgh has been a hive of activity since we opened our doors after the summer holidays. We have enjoyed all your summer holiday stories in different languages.
Visitors to the Hungry Mind were reunited after having spent years abroad or they had just arrived in the Netherlands. Dutch visitors to the clubhouse get together during the ´Repat Coffee Mornings´ on the last Tuesday of the month to chat about their experiences overseas. Grannies and grandpas, parents and caretakers and a lively mix of volunteers ensure that the company is always good.
After school, children can be seen playing chess, crafts and other games and various sporting activities. There is cricket (Mondays), football and mini tennis (Wednesday), archery (Thursdays) and there will soon be rugby training for children on Friday afternoons.
Together with the Green Department of the Loosduinen municipality, we have planted a garden that is being maintained by children on a Wednesday afternoon.
The board of the foundation has been strengthened by a professional secretary and a treasurer and the new team is setting up a sound structure for our volunteer project: The Hungry Mind Community and Activity Centre.
We are also talking to the City Council of The Hague about the use of the clubhouse in the future. Recently, our heating system that was installed in 1982, gave up the ghost, but the
council has offered to replace it soon so that we are ready for the autumn weather and the forthcoming winter. In the meantime, the International School has been kind enough to lend us some heaters to make sure we are comfortable. United we are stronger – that’s our motto!
Some new activities and dates for your diary :
RUGBY TRAINING –free trial Friday, October 7 – 15.30-16.30 for children aged 9, 10, 11 from 16.45-17.45 for children aged 12 and older. After the autumn holidays till the Christmas holidays, we will start an 8-week session of rugby training in various
age groups. The costs is € 40 for 8 weeks.
VOLUNTEERS COFFEE GET-TOGETHER for current and new volunteers: Thursday, 27 October from 11.00-12.00. Share your ideas with us and have a cup of coffee on us!
BEAUTY AND PAMPERING breakfast- Friday 4 November 8.30-12.30.
Breakfast & one beauty treatment: €15 per person
Registration at the clubhouse is required
COFFEE MORNING FOR RETURNING DUTCHIES – On every last Tuesday of the month, The Hungry Mind organises a low-threshold get-together for returning Dutch residents. Next get-together is: Tuesday 25 October from 9.30 onwards.
Nieuws – najaar 2011
Sinds we weer geopend zijn na zomervakantie is het erg druk geweest in ons gezellige clubhuis op sportpark Ockenburgh. We horen vele verschillende vakantie verhalen in verschillende talen. Mensen ontmoeten elkaar na jaren in het buitenland te hebben gewoond of omdat ze pas net ‘aangekomen’ zijn in Nederland. Nederlanders ontmoeten elkaar en praten over hun overzeesche avonturen en gemis, tijdens de Nederlands ‘Repat coffees’ elke laatste dindsdag van de maand. Opa’s en oma’s, ouders, oppassen en een
gezellige mix van vrijwilligers maken het een bont gezelschap.
Kinderen zijn na schooltijd aan het schaken, knutselen en sporten. Er wordt gecricked (maandag), gevoetbald en gemini tennist (woensdag). Ook word er aan boogschieten gedaan (donderdag) en binnenkort beginnen we met rugby trainingen voor de jeugd op vrijdagmiddag.
We hebben samen met de afdeling groen van stadsdeel Loosduinen een eigen tuintje aangelegd en deze wordt onderhouden door de kinderen op woensdagmiddag. Ons stichtingsbestuur is versterkt met een professionele secretaresse en een penningmeester en er wordt in samenwerking met dit nieuwe team een stevige struktuur neergezet voor ons vrijwilligers project: Community and activity centre The Hungry Mind.
Ook praten we met de gemeente Den Haag over het gebruik van het clubhuis in de toekomst. Helaas heeft onze verwarmingsinstallatie uit 1982 het begeven en zitten we even in een niet zo’n warm clubhuis. De internationale school heeft ons tijdelijk
verwarmingselementen gegeven om bij te verwarmen. De gemeente Den Haag heeft
aangeboden om onze verwarmingsketel te vervangen, zodat we er binnenkort weer
warmpjes bij zullen zitten. Met z’n allen sterk – dat is ons motto.
Nieuws en data voor de agenda:
RUGBY TRAINING – free trial- Vrijdag 7 oktober 2011 15.30-16.30 voor kinderen van 9, 10, 11 jaar 16.45-17.45 voor kinderen van 12 jaar en ouder. Na de herfstvakantie – tot de kerstvakantie, beginnen we met een blok van 8 weken van rugby trainingen in
verschillende leeftijdsgroepen. Kosten zullen 40 Euro zijn voor 8 weken.
VRIJWILLIGERS KOFFIE voor bestaande en nieuwe vrijwilligers: donderdag 27 oktober van 11.00 –12.00
BEAUTY AND PAMPERING ontbijt- Friday 4 November 8.30-12.30.
Breakfast & one beauty treatment: €15 per person
Registration at the clubhouse is required
KOFFIE VOOR TERUGKERENDE NEDERLANDERS Elke laatste dinsdag van de maand organiseert The Hungry Mind een laagdrempelige get-together voor Nederlanders die recentelijk zijn teruggekeerd naar Nederland.
