Awards for departing municipal councillors

Awards for departing municipal councillors Hans Bol (Christian Union), Dillian Hos (GreenLeft), Jan de van der Schueren (CDA), Sieta Koet-Minis (Amersfoort2014), Maarten Flikkema (VVD), Dirk-Joost van Hamersveld (D66) and Kees Kraanen (VVD).

On Tuesday evening, 31 March, municipal councillors Hans Bol, Dillian Hos, Jan de van der Schueren, Dirk-Joost van Hamersveld and Kees Kraanen will receive the Saint George Medal from the city of Amersfoort. Sieta Koet-Minis and Maarten Flikkema will receive a Royal Honour from Mayor Lucas Bolsius. They are being awarded for their many years of service as municipal councillors and their active contribution to the Amersfoort community.

Hans Bol

Hans Bol will receive the Saint George Medal for his many years of service as a councillor for the Christian Union since 2018. In addition to his council work, he took on extra responsibilities. For example, he served as chair of the Environment committee. In that role, he guided the handling of complex dossiers, such as plans for wind turbines on the Isselt industrial estate.

From 2022 to 2026, Hans Bol was also chair of the audit committee. In that position, he advocated for careful and transparent working methods in the municipal council, with attention for all voices in the council.

Outside of politics, Hans Bol was also active. He served on the church council of the Church of the Nazarene in Amersfoort and has for years helped young people in vulnerable situations. He is a board member of De Nieuwe Kans in Rotterdam, an organisation that supports young adults with problems. He is also involved with Youth for Christ Europe, where he helps with a conference centre for young people in the Czech Republic.

Dillian Hos

Dillian Hos has been a municipal councillor for GreenLeft in Amersfoort since 10 October 2017. From 2018 to 2022, she served as parliamentary leader. In her council work, she focused mainly on green issues, sustainability, good education, liveable neighbourhoods and equal opportunities for children. She was also a member of the audit committee and the Environment and Governance committees.

From 2014 to 2017, she served as an extraordinary councillor, focusing on safety and mobility. In 2015, she worked at the national office of GreenLeft as Head of Party and Communications and Deputy Director. Before that, she was a parliamentary assistant for GreenLeft Amersfoort.

In addition to her political work, Hos is active in education. She works as a primary school director at STEV and previously served as director of several schools in Amersfoort. As a school director, she is in daily contact with families and children, an experience she brought to her political work.

Outside the council, Hos is also committed to equal opportunities for children. She teaches at the ABC Amersfoort Holiday Academy, a summer school for children who speak less Dutch at home. Earlier, she guided young children at Kwintes. Before her career in education, she worked for many years as a senior editor and parliamentary editor at daily newspaper Trouw. In 2017, she was a jury member for the Education Prize awarded by the Foundation for the Promotion of Education Journalism.

Jan de van der Schueren

Jan de van der Schueren has been a municipal councillor for the CDA since March 2018 and served as parliamentary leader. Before that, he was a municipal councillor in Ede from March 2002 to January 2005. In addition to his council work, he was, among other things, a member of the audit committee and the Governance committee. As spokesperson for his party, he focused on finance and taxation, real estate and land development, operations, governance and service delivery. He was also involved in projects such as the Stadsring and Stationsplein.

Jan de van der Schueren worked for nearly forty years in the Royal Netherlands Army. Due to his long service with the armed forces, he has a large network of veterans. He is committed to their interests in the Amersfoort region. He regularly participates in veterans' activities and supports initiatives that recognise veterans, such as the Witte Anjerperkje in Zocherplantsoen and various veterans' monuments. He is also a board member of the Friends of the Martinuskerk Foundation and a member of the Order of Malta, Netherlands Association.

Sieta Koet-Minis

Sieta Koet-Minis has been appointed Member of the Order of Orange-Nassau by Royal Decree.

She was active for the Amersfoort Citizen Party (BPA) from March to December 2010. In December 2010, she continued as an independent councillor under the name Groep Koet until January 2011. She then served as a councillor for GreenLeft until November 2013. From that point, she worked again as an independent councillor (Groep Koet) until March 2014. After that, she took a break as a councillor and worked as an extraordinary councillor. In March 2018, she returned to the municipal council as a councillor for Amersfoort2014.

Among other things, she is committed to 'Orange the World', an international campaign against violence against women and girls. She has worked in various ways to raise awareness of this important issue.

Maarten Flikkema

Maarten Flikkema has been appointed Member of the Order of Orange-Nassau by Royal Decree.

He has been a municipal councillor for the VVD since March 2014 and was appointed parliamentary leader in 2018, a role he has held ever since. He served as chair of the presidium, a member of the audit committee and a member of the Legal Assistance Supervisory Committee.

He was also a member of the Social Affairs and Environment committees and spokesperson for, among other things, Sport, Mobility and Area-Based Working for governance.

Flikkema is an entrepreneur. With his company Flikkema Innovation Management & Coordination (FIMC), he supports companies, institutions and universities with innovation projects.

Dirk-Joost van Hamersveld

Dirk-Joost van Hamersveld has been a continuous municipal councillor for D66 since 2010. He was one of the longest-serving councillors in Amersfoort and, as spokesperson for his party, focused on spatial development and projects such as the Hoefkwartier, the Trapezium station area, the Wagenwerkplaats, the Kop van Isselt and various projects in Vathorst. He was also a member of the Legal Assistance Supervisory Committee and Deputy Chair of the municipal council.

In 2018, he was appointed Member of the Order of Orange-Nassau for his long-standing commitment to society. Since 1981, he has been a volunteer, organiser and board member for various associations in and around his hometown of Hooglanderveen.

Kees Kraanen

Kees Kraanen was a councillor for the BPA from 2002 to 2010. He then served as a councillor for the VVD from 2010 to 2018 and as an alderman for the VVD from 2018 to 2022. Since 2022, he has been a councillor for the VVD again. Over the years, he has held various positions, including parliamentary leader, deputy parliamentary leader, chair of the employers' committee, chair of the presidium and member of trust and selection committees.

As an alderman from 2018 to 2022, he focused on, among other things, urban management, climate adaptation, human resources and organisation (HRM), ICT and permit issuance, supervision and enforcement (VTH). He played an important role in the city's development and represented Amersfoort in regional and national consultations. He also served as Second Deputy Mayor. In January 2022, he fell ill. A year later, he returned to the municipal council.

Kees Kraanen was previously appointed Member of the Order of Orange-Nassau during the General Assembly in 2022.