Nan Lombaers-Els Huijser Fund
Named Fund at Mama Cash since 2007
In 1997, two Dutch women, Nan Lombaers and Els Huijser, decided to use their personal resources to lend a ‘helping hand’ to disadvaged women worldwide. Both were psychotherapists who, in their professional and personal lives, were passionate about women’s rights. They were avid travellers and enjoyed discovering new countries and cultures. To realise their vision, they created a foundation, Stichting Westeinde (named after the street in which they lived) to support women’s empowerment initiatives globally. After Nan Lombaers and Els Huijser died in the beginning of the new millennium, their will specified that the proceeds of their estate should go to Stichting Westeinde.
The trustees of Stichting Westeinde were committed to carrying out the founders’ vision, and they saw in Mama Cash a fund with the skills and experience to support women and girls in the way that Nan Lombaers and Els Huijser had envisioned. In 2007, the trustees established the Nan Lombaers-Els Huijser Fund at Mama Cash as a donor-advised fund, with a three-year commitment of 750,00 euros. The purpose of the Nan Lombaers-Els Huijser Fund was to support Mama Cash’s grantmaking to advance the rights of women and girls, with particular focus in the areas of economic justice, independence and civic participation. The recipe was simple and powerful: Stichting Westeinde contributed the resources, and Mama Cash provided the grantmaking expertise and networks in international women’s rights movements.
After the fund’s succesful first three years, the trustees decided in 2010 to transfer the remaining corpus of Stichting Westeinde to the Nan Lombaers-Els Huijser Fund at Mama Cash – approximately 1,8 million euros, to support women’s and girls’ rights worldwide: a wonderful tribute to two visionary women who wanted to contribute to a more just world for women and girls. Mama cash is exteremely grateful to the trustees of Stichting Westeinde for their confidence and trust in the work of Mama Cash.
