F.E.L.I.S. Foundation

The F.E.L.I.S. Foundation was established at the initiative of Gerda van Petersen in 2010. ‘Felis’ is Papiamento for Happy and the abbreviation F.E.L.I.S. stands for Felisidat, Espasio, Libertat i Speransa (Happiness, Space, Freedom, and Hope). This foundation was established with the aim of forming an effective professional organization that focuses on the after-school care and guidance of children. In this way, the children can receive extra support and education in addition to education at school. Nowadays the organization is a multifunctional centrum in the benefit of mothers, children and the neighborhood as a whole.

The objectives of the Foudation are to:

•  set up an educational organization that mainly helps women and young people by offering support and guidance regarding the upbringing and care;
• Promote the spiritual and practical well-being of people who find themselves in or threaten to find themselves in problematic situations by supporting and guiding people based on a Christian identity and putting them in the right circumstances and position. This so that they may be members of society in a dignified way.

The foundation tries to achieve its goal by:

• Setting up and maintaining a network of volunteers and professionals.
• Providing education and information.
• Providing material assistance.
• Providing practical tools on the basis of conversations, coaching and education.