Do good initiative Give me 5 nominated for embrace award 2022

The Present partners with hotels to provide rooms for economically homeless people

The do good initiative GiveMe5 has been nominated for the Omarmprijs 2022. The omarmprijs is awarded annually to reward existing initiatives that create opportunities for Amsterdam residents with tight wallets. GiveMe5, an initiative of non-profit The Present, invites hotels to make five rooms available to economically homeless people. A group that is steadily growing, partly due to rising inflation and housing crisis. Amsterdam hotels Kimpton de Witt, Pestana Riverside Amsterdam, Crowne Plaza, Dicker & Thijs, Aitana & Holiday Inn Express already participated in this initiative. The winners of the 8^e edition of the Omarm Prize will be announced on Thursday 13 October at Podium Mozaiek in Amsterdam.

Free hotel rooms for economically homeless people in Amsterdam

GiveMe5 is an initiative of The Present, a foundation working towards an inclusive society. Through matchmaking, events and campaigns, The Present connects entrepreneurs with social initiatives to contribute from their expertise. For GiveMe5, they are specifically encouraging the hotel industry to make five rooms per hotel available to economically homeless people who have lost their homes and ended up on the streets due to a confluence of circumstances (bankruptcy, divorce, job loss).

Hotels can play a crucial positive role in this by making their rooms available for a period of three months; the time a person needs to come out of survival mode and rebuild a life. After that, participants move on to (semi-)permanent housing. Because people do not stay on the streets unnecessarily, additional problems are prevented. Participants are supervised by The Rainbow Group during their stay.

About the embrace prize

Since 2014, the Omarm Prize has been awarded to existing initiatives that create opportunities for Amsterdam residents with tight wallets. This year, a total of 24 different initiatives have been nominated. They will be judged by a seven-member jury including Marjolein Moorman, Martin van Engel and Ugur Pekdemir. Initiatives that have previously won prizes are: Carabic Foundation (2021), Study Halls (2020) and The Weggeefwinkel Beemsterstraat (2019). The presentation of the Omarmprijs 2022 will take place on Thursday 13 October at Podium Mozaiek in Amsterdam.