My Uncle Ruud picked me up from the Airport ( brother of my mother ) haven't seen him for about 5 years. He is the youngest of all the Uncles.... only 6 years older then me.... figured it would be fun to hang out with him in Amsterdam.

A couple years ago, Ruud started a nonprofit company that can be compared to the Salvation Army.... but does alot more for the community. He employs homeless kids from Amsterdam that need to work and need to get out of trouble. They have a couple trucks that they go to peoples houses with and pick out things that the people want hauled off. They then sort all the stuff out and set it up at there store for people to come in and buy. The business is going very well and they are about to expand to a second store and bring in even more kids. Currently they employ about 30 people at any one time. I guess you could say it is kinda like a half way house. The kids get assigned here by the state and are paid by the state. My uncle teaches them how to get along and be productive in society again. I like the idea alot and think he is doing a great job.

The name of the company is Jutters Dok... which means nothing to my English speaking friends. In English... the word Jutter is analogous to beach comber.... or beach scavenger..... and a dok.... is... well... a dock. So the name Jutters Dok... is a dock for beach scavengers I guess.... The store is decorated in a very cool manner. The place is set up like a big boat. The walls have port holes, they have a mess hall that looks kinda like an engine room and another room where all the business is done.... which is analogous to the helm.