Simon Jelsma passes away at 93

AMSTERDAM - 16 November. Simon Jelsma (born in Groningen, The Netherlands in 1918), co-founder of the Dutch Postcode Lottery, died on Tuesday November 15th. Simon was one of the people who initiated development aid and cooperation in The Netherlands.

In 1954 Simon was involved in "De Pleingroep" (The Square Group) as a preacher. He held the first 'Pleinrede' (Speech at the Square) on the Saturday before Pentecost, calling for peace and justice. His sermons marked the beginning of a Dutch Third World movement.

Novib
This led to the founding of Novib in 1956 (Dutch Organisation for International Welfare), to help people in development countries. Simon Jelsma was the vice-president of the organisation and a board member for thirty years, in later years alongside his career as a journalist for the NOS (Dutch Broadcasting Foundation). Jelsma left the Roman Catholic church in 1969 and worked for the NOS until his retirement in 1983.

Postcode Lottery
To structurally raise funds for charities, Simon Jelsma founded the Dutch Postcode Lottery in 1989 together with Boudewijn Poelmann, Frank Leeman and Herman de Jong. Later, the BankGiro Lottery and Friends Lottery were added to the Postcode Lottery family. These charity lotteries have since allocated over 4 billion euros to national and international charities.

Boudewijn Poelmann, Chairman of the Board Dutch Postcode Lottery: "Simon fought relentlessly against injustice and poverty. He was our inspiration, and always motivated us to remember our goal. This attitude was reflected in his warmth and compassion for all of us. Up until the end he was well informed about the ins and outs at the Lottery. We are very grateful for his great contribution and for his friendship."