De Vierslag

Our training center: De Vierslag

Our headquarters is based in the village of Kruiningen, in the province of Zeeland, in the southwest of the Netherlands. The building, De Vierslag, was originally a retirement home called Avondlicht (evening light) built in 1934. Because new specifications were implemented for retirement homes, the building was closed in 1982 and placed for sale.

In 1983 three families purchased the building and it became 'De Vierslag' (a Dutch word referring to the 'four beats' used in the manual way wheat was separated from chaff). John and Donna Oostdijk, Albert and Lidi van Zeist and Rien and Willy Oostdijk formed a community to realise dreams that the individual partners had not been able to fully accomplish on their own. De Vierslag became a Christian community center to house young people in need as well as house, train and send out teams for cross-cultural youth work.

Since 1983 many changes have taken place: the Van Zeist family moved to another building in Kruiningen to expand and focus on their ministry to young people needing a warm nest (Foundation The Nest). This provided room in De Vierslag for the offices of Atlantic Bridge, founded by John Oostdijk 1988.

In 2007, we have again re-situated the offices and guest rooms so as to use the space more efficiently and make room for long- and short-term guests. In the summer of 2008 Rien and Willy Oostdijk will move to Middelburg and John and Donna will also move to a different apartment in the building. By September 2008, three-quarters of De Vierslag will be available to Atlantic Bridge to house and train young people in the mission of Bridgebuilding. If these walls could talk, just imagine the stories they could tell!
Renovation 2007
As of February 2007, a total overhaul of the Vierslag has begun, working from the inside out. As the mission of Atlantic Bridge is growing, so is the need for more space for housing, offices and training. We plan to renovate and refresh the entire building, making better use of the facilities to house staff, teams, interns and guests and provide better offices and facilities for training.

There are many different projects to this renovation: everything from building a dormer, painting a bedroom, electrical wiring and mounting floorboards to plumbing, mounting sinks, laying tiles and re-organising the garden. In February/March of 2007 and again in March 2008, teams from the Prince Street United Brethren Church in Shippensburg, PA were here to do some major renovations. But we still need a variety of folks young and old to help! If you are willing to come and give us a hand, please This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . And of course we look forward to showing you around our beautiful region, visiting the sea, drinking Dutch coffee, eating Belgian waffles and enjoying the multi-cultural fellowship!