{"id":18465,"date":"2025-09-19T20:16:43","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T18:16:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/svjmedia.nl\/internationaljournalism\/?p=18465"},"modified":"2026-01-15T11:13:07","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T10:13:07","slug":"laura-opens-home-to-refugees-amid-europes-border-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/svjmedia.nl\/internationaljournalism\/18465\/laura-opens-home-to-refugees-amid-europes-border-debate\/","title":{"rendered":"Laura Opens Home to Refugees Amid Europe\u2019s Border Debate"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
While calls for stricter migration rules are getting louder in the Netherlands and across Europe, Laura Faber is opening her house instead. Two refugees are living with her and her family in their home in Deventer while waiting for a residence permit. \u2018People often say I\u2019m giving up my privacy,\u2019 she says. But what I\u2019ve gained is a richer life, full of different cultures.\u2019<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A house full of stories <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Laura started hosting refugees through TakeCareBnb, an organization who matches refugees and families. In 2025, TakeCareBnB reported that\u00a0more than 1,300 refugees\u00a0had been helped to stay with Dutch host families, with\u00a0over 500 matches\u00a0realized in 2024 alone.\u00a0Across the Netherlands, similar initiatives, including the\u00a0Thuisgevers\u00a0project, have also provided temporary homes to refugees, with\u00a0around 500 people housed\u00a0through that effort in 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Currently she has two people living with her and her two kids. They met through her work at a pre-integration school. \u2018It can be hectic at times,\u2019 she laughs, \u2018but we have a cozy household.\u2019 For her childeren it\u2019s the most normal thing that they welcome people in their home and that here\u2019s always someone extra at the dinner table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Barshank, one of the refugees living with her, nods in agreement. \u2018I feel at home here. We eat and talk together, a mix of English and Dutch because I want to learn the language. In the asylum center, I shared a room with four or five people, with no privacy and no activities. Here, it\u2019s a family. And it feels like I\u2019m truly part of it.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Journey to safety\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Barshank left his country Syria years ago. He departed in 2011, stayed in Iraq and Greece and two years ago he came to the Netherlands. His journey was marked by rejections and procedures. \u2018I don\u2019t want to be a refugee anymore,\u2019 he says. I just want a normal life: to work, pay taxes and be part of society.\u2019<\/p>\n In Deventer he\u2019s building towards that. He cooks daily for Laura\u2019s family and is currently in the process of building up his own catering business. \u2018I learned cooking from my mother. When I first lived on my own, I would call her every day to ask what I should cook. Now I can make people happy with it, and share a piece of my culture.\u2019 \u2018Since he lives here, I get fed on a chefs level,\u2019 Laura adds with a smile.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Against the current<\/strong><\/p>\n Laura\u2019s choice contradicts the political reality where the focus is restriction and return. But according to her that side is too one-sided. \u2018We talk about an asylum problem, but we forget that our society is aging. Soon we will need people to teach in classrooms, to work in healthcare. Refugees are often resilient and motivated. It\u2019s a waste to let them do nothing for years.\u2019<\/p>\n She sees every day how quickly prejudices disappear when there is personal contact. \u2018In our street, people had never met anyone from Syria. Now they know Barshank and think he\u2019s wonderful. People need to talk to each other, only then do prejudices disappear.\u2019<\/p>\n A broader perspective<\/strong><\/p>\n Jan de Beer, ambassador of TakeCareBnB, recognizes this pattern. He himself took in a fifteen-year-old boy. \u2018You learn how much of a difference you can make,\u2019 he says. \u2018It doesn\u2019t have to be big. Simply opening your door can already change someone\u2019s life.\u2019\u00a0At the same time, he points out that finding host families remains a challenge. \u2018The willingness is there, but many people hesitate because they think it\u2019s complicated or too intense. In reality, most placements work well, and the support from the organization is crucial.\u2019 According to Jan, hosting families also offer a rare way for refugees to escape years of waiting in isolation.<\/p>\n Hope instead of distrust\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n In a Europe that often debates numbers and borders, Laura\u2019s home offers a different perspective: one of connection, resilience, and hope. While policies may divide, her kitchen table shows what becomes possible when doors are opened instead of closed.<\/p>\n\n\n While calls for stricter migration rules are getting louder in the Netherlands and across Europe, Laura Faber is opening her house instead. Two refugees are living with her and her family in their home in Deventer while waiting for a residence permit. \u2018People often say I\u2019m giving up my privacy,\u2019 she says. But what I\u2019ve […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2963,"featured_media":18484,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18465","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cbj","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
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