From left: the Nous children, business owner Brenda Nous (centre) and police officer and Acting Prosecutor Frank Nous (right) before boarding an aircraft en route to the Netherlands.
- EUSTATIUS--Students wishing to continue their education in the Netherlands have been leaving St. Eustatius in staggering numbers over the past few days.
From left: Siem Dijkshoorn, Acting Island Secretary Malvern Dijkshoorn-Lopes and their sons Vincent and Simon.
The Nous family bade farewell as both business owner Brenda Nous and her son boarded a Winair aircraft on Friday.
Police Officer and Acting Prosecutor Frank Nous, along with their other children, relatives and friends, came out to wish the duo a safe and successful journey.
Acting Island Secretary Malvern Dijkshoorn-Lopes and her husband Siem Dijkshoorn accompanied their two sons to the Netherlands on Monday, leaving the island on a chartered aircraft.
Because several Statia children will be freshmen, their parents travelled with them to make sure that they settle in, in the Netherlands, before returning to the island.
Family and friends were on hand to wish the departing students success in the upcoming school year.
The public entity St. Eustatius is assisting students who need to return to their place of study for the upcoming school year. The government helped arrange for 18 students to travel to Curaçao and Bonaire on Sunday.
The remaining students in Statia were made aware that it would take a little time for them to travel to their schools as well and that priority would be given to those students who need to return to school. The majority of students have to be at their schools by August 15.
Deputy Government Commissioner Alida Francis said all students who had submitted a request were being advised to be prepared to travel on short notice, as travel arrangements could made with a day’s notice or sometimes even a matter of hours.
The students who have been in contact with the government’s office have already been instructed that they will be flown out on chartered flights, which means that they will need to be ready to travel with their suitcases fully packed.
