Two pastors
In late August 1974, the City of Amsterdam bans sleeping in the Vondelpark, but there is no further coherent policy. Reformed pastor Douwe Wouters cycles through the park daily on his way to work and worries about what he sees happening there. Together with Dutch Reformed pastor Paul Aalders, he tries to mobilize various church bodies to organize shelter for these young people. As this yields nothing, in the summer of 1974 Wouters and Aalders themselves take the initiative for a project in the Vondelpark, together with Bart van Empel of the Christian organization Youth for Christ and Floyd McClung of the Christian community Youth With A Mission.
Listening ear
On July 1, 1974, the two pastors opened coffee bar Speak Easy, in the basement of a school strategically located by the Vondelpark. Until the end of August, young people can come here every evening for coffee, tea, toilet visits, live music, a non-judgmental listening ear and good conversation. The place is packed every night. Volunteers come from Youth for Christ and Youth With A Mission and through various churches, which also raise the necessary funds through collections. The project is sustained by Christian faith and commitment.